While his time in Durham was brief, Kyrie Irving did dazzle while he was on the court. Credit: CHUCK LIDDY

Every Saturday, the News & Observer takes a look around the ACC. That also provides an opportunity to check in with the Blue Devils and look for any emerging trends.

Duke’s performance against Virginia Tech was impressive, no matter what superlative or comparison is used.

Biggest ACC win since a 32-point drubbing of UNC in 2010.
Biggest ACC road win since 2005 at Florida State.
Highest 3-point percentage (70.6 percent) of any Division I road team this year.

Head coach Mike Krzyzewski had another one after the game: The Blue Devils dominated the Hokies like Kyrie Irving dominated the New Orleans Hornets in the fourth quarter Wednesday.

The recruitment of Kyrie Irving passed without excessive fanfare, obscured by the hype and hoopla surrounding Harrison Barnes and his choice between Duke and North Carolina. Then Duke won the national title in 2010, and Irving walked in the door the next fall as the point guard that veteran, experienced team needed to contend for another title.

That isn’t how it worked out, thanks to Irving’s toe injury. With Jabari Parker, Duke gets another chance at a similar arrangement: He’s the final piece in a national-title puzzle, an instant injection of raw, unbridled talent into a veteran team that already knows how to win.

Former Duke guard Kyrie Irving was named the NBA's Rookie of the Year this morning.

The No. 1 overall pick in last summer's NBA draft, the Cleveland Cavaliers guard received 117 of 120 possible first-place votes to run away with the award. 

Minnesota's Ricky Rubio and Denver's Kenneth Faried finished a distant second and third, respectively, in the voting.

Faried, San Antonio's Kawhi Leonard and New York's Iman Shumpert (formerly of Georgia Tech) received the three other first-place votes.

DURHAM – After former Duke point guard Kyrie Irving said Monday that Mike Krzyzewski would coach the U.S. Olympic team in 2016, the Blue Devils coach said Tuesday that such a decision has not been made.

“While Kyrie and I have discussed his potential role with USA Basketball in the future, my focus right now is on the remainder of our Duke team’s season and the 2012 Olympics,” Krzyzewski said in a release provided by Duke.

“Jerry Colangelo and I have not discussed anything beyond what is ahead of the USA national team this summer as we pursue a gold medal in London.”

Kyrie Irving joined such ACC legends as Ralph Sampson and David Thompson when he became the 10th ACC player to be taken first overall pick in the NBA Draft on Thursday. The Cleveland Cavaliers, as expected, chose the Duke freshman over Arizona forward Derrick Williams with the No. 1 pick.

Irving is the ACC’s first No. 1 pick since Duke’s Elton Brand in 1999 and the 10th in conference history. Only the Big Ten, with nine first overall picks, is even close.

Duke teammate Nolan Smith joined Irving in the first round, going to the Portland Trail Blazers with the 21st pick, while Kyle Singler went to the Detroit Pistons with the third pick of the second round, 33rd overall. All told, the ACC had five players drafted in the first round, the same as last year.

North Carolina’s Dexter Strickland won’t be at the NBA Draft on Thursday in body but will be in spirit.

It’s all about that ol’ Jersey bond and his Duke buddy Kyrie Irving.

“We’re good friends, so sure, I’m going to be watching and hoping he’s the No. 1 pick,” Strickland said Tuesday during UNC’s summer media interviews.

Strickland, a junior guard from Rahway, N.J., and Irving, from West Orange, N.J., spent much of the spring working out with each other.

Former Duke point guard Kyrie Irving -- the frontrunner to be the NBA's top pick -- said he'd be playing for Duke next season had he not played in those NCAA tournament games in March.

Irving said there was no chance he'd have turned pro, based on the eight early-season games he played as a freshman before suffering a severe turf toe-type injury.

Irving said there were just too many questions about his health, before he returned to the court, to have felt comfortable turning pro.

Former Duke point guard Kyrie Irving has signed with agent Jeff Wechsler of 24/7 Sports, Duke spokesman Matt Plizga said Saturday in a text message.

Irving announced April 6 that he was going to enter the NBA draft and hire an agent, ending his college eligibility. He is projected as a top-three pick overall in the draft despite missing 26 of Duke’s 37 games last season with a toe injury.

A 6-foot-2 native of West Orange, N.J., Irving averaged 17.5 points and 4.3 assists per game last season as a freshman.  

While N.C. State’s C.J. Leslie still has five days to put his name into the draft, most of the big NBA decisions in the area have been made, with North Carolina’s Harrison Barnes announcing Monday his intention to stay, joining John Henson and Tyler Zeller.

What it means for the teams involved aside, for the players involved -- the three Tar Heels and Duke’s Kyrie Irving, who will jump to the NBA -- it means that everyone (so far, counting Leslie) has made what looks to be the right decision for their future.

Departing Duke point guard Kyrie Irving said it was difficult to make the decision to leave the Blue Devils because he believed he could learn a lot playing a full season under coach Mike Krzyzewski.

But Irving, whose freshman season was limited to 11 games because of a toe injury that kept him out 3 ½ months, said in a telephone conference with reporters this afternoon that he couldn’t turn down this opportunity to enter the NBA draft.

“To go to the NBA is my ultimate dream,” Irving said. “I’ve dreamed about it for a while. Having the opportunity to be such a high pick at such a young age is an opportunity that a lot of people won’t pass up.”