Duke Dismisses Rasheed Sulaimon for Failing to 'Live Up to Standards'

Duke dismissed junior guard Rasheed Sulaimon from its nationally ranked Blue Devils basketball squad this week, making him the first player ever to be removed by coach Mike Krzyzewski.

The Blue Devils, ranked as one of the top five teams in the nation for most of the season, were coming off a 77-73 loss to Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana, when the team announced Sulaimon's dismissal Thursday, according to the News & Observer.

"Rasheed has been unable to consistently live up to the standards required to be a member of our program," Krzyzewski said in a Duke athletics news release. "It is a privilege to represent Duke University and with that privilege comes the responsibility to conduct oneself in a certain manner. After Rasheed repeatedly struggled to meet the necessary obligations, it became apparent that it was time to dismiss him from the program."

Sulaimon averaged 10.0 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game in more than 90 games with the Blue Devils. Those statistics fell to 7.5 points, 2.0 rebounds, and 1.8 assists this season, the News & Observer noted.

The Duke Chronicle wrote that Sulaimon was a mixed bag over his two-plus seasons at Duke, pointing to how his 21-point game against Virginia last year — including 7-of-11 shooting — led the Blue Devils to a 69-65 victory.

But he found himself in hot water after pushing a player in a game against Elon earlier this season, drawing the Blue Devils' first technical foul of the season and was rumored to have been kicked out of practices leading up to the Notre Dame game. He also reportedly had a poor attitude when things didn't go his way, often pouting or failing to cheer on his teammates, ESPN noted.

"Sulaimon was certainly talented — but he could never get out of his own way in terms of attitude and conduct," wrote the News & Observer's Laura Keeley. "His best year at Duke was his first, when he played in all 36 games, starting 33 of them."

ESPN reported that in November it appeared Sulaimon was fitting into his new role coming off the bench.

"This was something that I had to really look in the mirror and think about and I had to come to grips with because this team is really talented," Sulaimon told ESPN then. "They're not going to need anything too extra or out of the ordinary. If you just do simple and just play hard you'll be successful."

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