DURHAM, N.C. — Over a 24-hour period, in between when rival North Carolina earned a right to play for the national title and had the championship slip through its fingers, two highly anticipated events hit the Duke basketball program.
On Sunday morning, Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski went under the knife at Duke University Hospital to have a total replacement of his ailing left knee.
On Monday morning, star freshman Brandon Ingram officially said goodbye to the Blue Devils, writing an essay on The Players’ Tribune website entitled “Farewell, Duke” announcing his intentions to turn professional.
Anyone close to the Duke program or who paid attention to coverage of the Blue Devils knew these events were looming.
Krzyzewski, when he returned from a brief, unscheduled February hospital stay for cardiac tests, said he’d be having his knee replaced when the Duke season ended. Sure enough, less than two weeks after Oregon beat Duke 82-68 in the NCAA tournament, the 69-year-old Krzyzewski was back at Duke Hospital for the procedure.
Dr. Michael P. Bolognesi, a joint replacement orthopaedic surgeon at Duke University Medical Center, performed the surgery and said… Get access to the rest of this article and unlimited access to the rest of ACCSports.com when you upgrade to Premium Access! Click on the button below to view all the benefits of becoming a Premium Access member.Get the rest of the story right now with Premium Access!
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