An Underrated Key to Duke’s Success: Free Throws and the Scheyer Blueprint

An Underrated Key to Duke’s Success: Free Throws and the Scheyer Blueprint

When people talk about Duke basketball under Jon Scheyer, the first things that usually come to mind are the five-star recruits, the NBA-ready talent, and the ability to adapt in an increasingly fast-paced game. But tucked behind the headlines and the highlight reels lies one of the most underrated — yet consistently lethal — aspects of Duke’s winning formula: free throws.

Last season, while fans marveled at the brilliance of Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel, the Blue Devils quietly turned the charity stripe into a weapon. They shot .790 from the line as a team, the best mark in the ACC and the second-best in program history — trailing only the storied 1978 squad that marched to the Final Four. For perspective, that figure also ranks seventh-best in ACC history, an astounding accomplishment given the conference’s long lineage of powerhouse programs.

Flagg & Knueppel: Freshmen Beyond Their Years

Two names defined Duke’s ability to cash in at the line: Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel. The freshman phenoms combined for nearly half of the Blue Devils’ free throw attempts (341 in total) and made almost 87 percent of them. Knueppel, in particular, was nearly automatic, hitting an eye-popping .914 percent and missing just 11 shots all season.

In an era when even great teams sometimes crumble late because of shaky foul shooting, Duke could lean on its rookies with absolute confidence. It wasn’t just about points, either — it was about composure. These were 18-year-olds walking into hostile ACC gyms, the game on the line, and calmly knocking down the most pressure-packed shots in basketball.

The Scheyer Stamp: From Player to Coach

This dominance from the stripe shouldn’t surprise anyone who remembers Jon Scheyer the player. Between 2007 and 2010, the sharp-shooting guard was one of the ACC’s most reliable free throw artists, hitting .861 for his career (fourth-best in Duke history) and nearly 90 percent in his sophomore season. When Duke won the 2010 national championship, Scheyer’s ability to close games from the line was a defining trait.

Now, as a coach, Scheyer’s teams reflect that same calm under fire. Over his first three years at the helm, Duke has made 1,575 of 2,074 free throws (.7594). That’s not just efficiency — that’s identity.

And the payoff is clear: under Scheyer, Duke has scored 36.2 percent of its points from the line, compared to 32.3 percent from the three-point arc. The numbers say it all — Duke is at its most dangerous when it puts pressure on defenses and forces trips to the stripe.

More Than Just Free Throws

But the parallels between Scheyer the player and Scheyer the coach don’t stop there. His reputation as a cerebral, low-mistake guard is mirrored in his teams’ growing ball security. Duke has improved its assist-to-turnover ratio every season under Scheyer, climbing from 10th in the ACC in 2023 (1.22) to first in 2025 (1.82). That kind of precision — free throws plus passing efficiency — makes the Blue Devils doubly hard to beat.

A Tradition of Exactness

For decades, Duke has been known for shooters who rise to the moment — J.J. Redick, Shane Battier, Trajan Langdon, and Scheyer himself. But this modern group has elevated foul shooting into something more systematic. It’s not about one player with ice in his veins; it’s about a culture of accountability.

And if there’s one stat that hints at March success, it’s this: the only Duke team to shoot better than last year’s squad from the line — the 1978 Blue Devils — went to the Final Four.

The Bottom Line

While the basketball world obsesses over Cooper Flagg’s dunks and Duke’s next one-and-done lottery pick, Scheyer’s quiet emphasis on fundamentals may be the real secret to Duke’s rise. Free throws aren’t flashy. They don’t show up in mixtapes. But in the moments that define seasons — late in ACC wars, or under the bright lights of March — they decide games.

And under Jon Scheyer, Duke has turned the “free” in free throws into something priceless.

Fun Fact: Best Free Throw Shooting Teams in Duke History

1. 1978 — .791 (Final Four)
2. 2025 — .790 (35-3 record)
3. 1973 — .785
4. 2023 — .7661
5. 1971 — .7656