We are profiling each member of the 2012-13 Creighton Bluejays men’s basketball team. Check in weekdays leading up to Creighton’s regular season opener against North Texas (November 9) for an introduction to this season’s Bluejays, from freshmen to seniors.
Doug McDermott (#3 / F / 6-8 / 225 lbs. / Jr.)
Check out our photo gallery of Doug McDermott (courtesy Adam Streur and Mike Spomer for WBR)
It has taken Doug McDermott just two seasons to become one of the most highly decorated Creighton Bluejays in history. Last season he became the first sophomore in league history to win the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year award.
Small potatoes, I guess, considering McDermott earned First-Team All-American accolades by Associated Press, USBWA, NABC, and ESPN.com, and Second-Team All-American honors from The Sporting News and CBSSports.com.
As. A. Sophomore.
There’s no way to overstate what McDermott’s accomplishments only two years into his collegiate career mean for Creighton’s program. In the college hoops world of Haves and Have Nots, The Bluejays have an All-American they can tout when recruiting other kids. The Jays have a dynamic, dual threat player who can stretch defenses from the rim to the NBA-level three-point arc.
Sure, the individual expectations may border on ridiculous. Is it realistic to think that McDermott can improve on his numbers from last season, when he ranked 1st nationally in field goals made, 3rd in scoring, and 7th in field goal shooting percentage? Can he score more than his CU single-season record of 801 points (22.89 ppg)?
Does it matter? For a program thirsting for a defining postseason run the likes of Butler, Xavier, Gonzaga, and other “mid-major” programs have made in the last 20 years, McDermott’s junior season seems the optimal time. With an experienced supporting cast, he won’t have to win games himself (although he can). With a solid non-conference schedule in place, he should have plenty of opportunities to lead CU to RPI-improving wins. And with no individual peer in the Valley, he is poised to lead the Jays to their first outright regular season championship since 2001.
So don’t fret over his individual stats. Just sit back and watch McDermott make a winner out of the Bluejays. That’s really all that matters.
We caught up with McDermott at Creighton’s Media Day: