Duke had three great years of shot blocking and defense with Mark Williams, who played for two years, and Dereck Lively, who played for Duke last year before leaving for the NBA.
And now, they’ve played against each other in the NBA.
Lively, who appears to be well ahead of the curve for an NBA rookie, finished with 15 points, 14 rebounds (three offensive), a steal and a block.
For his part, Williams was 8-8 for 19 points. He also grabbed 10 boards.
Lively wasn’t far behind, hitting 7-9.
It was the first of what we hope will be many matchups in the league.