Duke basketball guard Sion James Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images

Duke Basketball Stars Lend Hand to Crazies Ahead of Showdown

Originally posted on Duke Blue Devils on SI
By Matt Giles | Last updated Dec 3, 2024 10:39 AM ET

The Cameron Crazies' famed craziness in enduring frigid overnight conditions just to camp out for a Duke basketball game has never gone unappreciated by the program.

So, this week, as the student section began pitching its Krzyzewskiville tents in anticipation of the SEC/ACC Challenge meeting between Jon Scheyer's No. 9-ranked Blue Devils (5-2, 0-0 ACC) and Bruce Pearl's visiting No. 2 Auburn Tigers (7-0, 0-0 SEC) at 9:15 p.m. ET Wednesday (ESPN), several Duke basketball players showed up to hand out cookies and "spread the word on the Sion James toy drive."

S/O to the diehard Crazies already locked in for Wednesday's game!

Made a drop & spread the word on the @SionJames14 toy drive last night. pic.twitter.com/sDMx40zeCg
— Duke Men’s Basketball (@DukeMBB) December 3, 2024

And the Blue Devils on hand, including freshman centerpiece Cooper Flagg, junior guard Tyrese Proctor, and graduate guard Sion James, even went as far as to help the Crazies set up camp, albeit not without cracking a few jokes in the process.

Check out the following highlights from the experience, which the official Duke basketball account posted on Tuesday morning:

Couple Crazies called in some experts to set up their tent ⛺️ pic.twitter.com/VNFcRVQDu8
— Duke Men’s Basketball (@DukeMBB) December 3, 2024

"You guys are Duke students," James jokingly noted when one group of Crazies admitted to struggling with the process of erecting its tent. "You're Duke Finance. You guys are going to be world-changers."

Perhaps the Crazies will return the favor by helping to serve as game-changers on Wednesday night.

Duke bounced back from last Tuesday night's Vegas Showdown defeat at the hands of the No. 1 Kansas Jayhawks by notching a 70-48 home win over the unranked Seattle Redhawks on Friday night. Following the battle against Auburn, Scheyer's third batch of Blue Devils will prepare for its first ACC contest, a true road test versus the Louisville Cardinals at 6 p.m. ET Sunday (ACC Network).

This article first appeared on Duke Blue Devils on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: