You know, @Jwest22, I really believe basketball isn’t our crucial and central focus (although, I’m not suggesting that you believe it is). However, K era hoops provides all Dukies – young or old, rich or poor, male or female, domestic or international, Trinity or Pratt or Divinity or Medical or Fuqua or . . . – with a common and often an enthusiastic “focal point,” from which more substantive matters can then potentially be developed and considered. I’ve often used this illustration:
- Two alums from one of our peer institutions (one a 65 year old male Divinity Doctorate and the other a 22 year old female BSE) are seated next to each other on a lengthy flight. They recognize that they are alumni of X university, but what do they talk about, especially to “break the ice,” given their obvious differences?
- Conversely, demographically identical Duke alums are seated next to each other. They, in all likelihood, have a great “ice breaker:” Duke Basketball. Once they are convivially engaged in a conversation, who knows where it may lead?