As assistants under Coach K, Pitt coach Jeff Capel saw 'it' factor in Duke's Jon Scheyer

Jon Scheyer made an instant impression on Jeff Capel upon joining the Duke coaching staff with his smarts, inquisitive nature, enthusiasm for learning and, most of all, unique feel for people.

As a former Blue Devils standout guard who became the youngest head coach in NCAA Division I basketball when he took over at VCU in 2002, Capel could relate to Scheyer developing from Mike Krzyzewski player prodigy to coaching protege. So it wasn’t a shock that Scheyer eventually became the successor to the legendary Duke coach.

“He had it. Whatever it is, he had it,” Capel said of Scheyer. “Just because of his feel, feel for the game, feel for people, feel for being able to get along with people. So I’m not suprised at the success that he’s had during his time there as an assistant, as associate head coach and now as the head coach.”

As his Pitt Panthers (11-5, 4-1 ACC) prepare to visit No. 24 Duke (12-4, 3-2) at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, N.C., Capel reminisced about serving with Scheyer on Coach K’s staff. They built a bond, winning an NCAA championship in 2015, before Capel departed for his dream of becoming an ACC head coach.

Where the 35-year-old Scheyer’s ascension to the first seat on the Duke bench appeared a natural fit for the former All-American and two-time Blue Devils captain, Capel claims he never envisioned it for himself.

“I never had thoughts of being the next Duke coach,” Capel said. “When I was there, I never thought about it. I tried to be the best assistant coach I could for coach and for the program. I understood my role.”

Capel was 27 when he took over at VCU, then landed the Oklahoma job at age 31. That experience put him in the conversation with the likes of former Duke assistants who became head coaches, from Notre Dame’s Mike Brey and Northwestern’s Chris Collins to Arizona State’s Bobby Hurley and former Marquette coach Steve Woj­chiechowski, as potential replacements upon Coach K’s retirement after an NCAA-record 1,202 victories and five national championships since 1980.

Scheyer recalled meeting Capel for the first time at the 2010 Final Four, when the latter was enduring difficulties at Oklahoma and stopped to see old friends and teammates Collins and Wojchiechowski at a Ruth’s Chris steakhouse in Indianapolis. Capel ended up meeting the entire Duke team, for which Scheyer was a senior point guard. Three years later, Scheyer joined the Duke staff as a special assistant and became close with Capel, whom he calls a “really good friend.”

“We spent a lot of time talking ball, talking coaching, talking life,” Scheyer said. “I don’t know if either of us when we met would think we would be in this position here on Wednesday night, but, I’ll tell you what, he’s done an amazing job with this team. They’re together. They’re tough. And, obviously, they’re very good.”

Though their styles of play differ, it’s no coincidence that Duke and Pitt share the signature Coach K traits of defensive tenacity, toughness on the boards and a focus on playing together. That’s evident to fellow ACC coaches, as Brey noted Monday on a videoconference call.

“Both those guys always had a high basketball IQ as players,” said Brey, who coached Capel at Duke and called Scheyer “a really gifted” young coach. “Both Jeff and Jon, the defensive side of the ball, they got that from their college coach, Mike K. Ball pressure and defending and battling on the defensive end and starting with that identity. That’s their fabric, both of those young coaches.”

When Brey credited one for their fearlessness “to take that job,” it wasn’t immediately clear which coach he was talking about: Scheyer for following in the footsteps of a legend like Krzyzewski, or Capel for accepting the challenge of resuscitating a once-proud Pitt program coming off an 0-18 season in the ACC under Kevin Stallings in 2018.

“I know I made the right move,” Capel said confidently.

It hasn’t been easy for Capel. The Panthers didn’t have a winning season in his first four years at Pitt. First, he dealt with a roster overhaul, then the covid-19 pandemic followed by a season with no fans permitted at games and NCAA rules changes that allowed a one-time transfer and NIL deals that made both recruiting and player retention a challenge.

On top of that, Petersen Events Center had slipped from one of the best college basketball venues to an arena that required upgrades to what Capel called its “underbelly,” from the locker room, offices and practice gym to the installation of a film room and lounge to attract top recruits.

“I never questioned whether I made the right decision. I never did that,” Capel said. “I felt like I made the right decision. I never had a dream job when I got into coaching. My dream was to coach in the ACC. I believed in this program. I knew the history of it. I believed in (AD) Heather (Lyke) and chancellor (Patrick) Gallagher. Most importantly, or just as importantly, I believed in me and what we could do.”

With a veteran roster stocked through the transfer portal, Capel has the Panthers playing their best in years. They won five consecutive games, including victories over nationally ranked North Carolina and Virginia, and were in contention for first place before Saturday’s 75-74 loss to Clemson. Now Capel returns to Duke for the second time since leaving for Pitt, facing a friend who took over his former program, and hoping the Panthers can sustain their success and reach the NCAA tourney.

“’Cape’ has done a great job bringing in talent and bringing in collectively the right pieces,” Scheyer said. “You can tell they get along. You can tell they’re about winning. When you look at the strengths of different players, it’s blended pretty well. I do know he did what was best for his team. You can tell this is their chance to win. This is their chance to do it. You can see they have an incredible belief. You can see they’re all about the right things. That makes it challenging to defend. They’re physical. They’re old. It’s really paid off for him.”