For the past year, since Duke’s 2024 NCAA Tournament ended one win short of the Final Four, this year’s event lodged itself in Justin Robinson’s mind.
Robinson is the director of player development for the Blue Devils, so that’s natural. But he’s also a San Antonio native, and the Alamodome holds so many great memories for his family.
“It’s always been in the back of my mind,” Robinson said last Saturday night, shortly after No. 1-ranked Duke beat Alabama, 85-65, at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. “Couldn’t let it distract me, but there was definitely a little extra motivation for me. I’m feeling it now. I’m really happy. I’m proud.”
By then, less than an hour after the final buzzer that night, Robinson said his phone was already buzzing with texts from his family.
The Alamodome, where Duke will play Houston on Saturday night in the national semifinals, was where Justin’s father, David, played the bulk of his Hall of Fame NBA career with the San Antonio Spurs.
Born in 1996, Justin admits he was too young to have first-hand memories of watching his dad lead the Spurs to their first NBA championship in 1999. He remembers the Spurs second title in 2003 but that came in their first season in their new, basketball-centric arena, and the final season of David Robinson’s career.
All that said, the Alamodome has been good to the Robinson family.
“We have a great history here with the Spurs in this building.” Justin Robinson said Thursday, outside Duke’s locker room at the Alamodome.
Even during his high school career at San Antonio Christian School, Robinson never had a chance to play in the building. He went on to Duke, first joining the Blue Devils as a walk-on before blossoming into a key contributor during his final college season in 2019-20. He was just hitting his stride when the COVID-19 pandemic abruptly ended the season and caused the NCAA tournament’s cancellation.
After a pro career overseas, he returned to Duke in November 2023 and joined coach Jon Scheyer’s staff as director of player development.
In that role, he’s worked with Duke’s big men, namely Khaman Maluach, Maliq Brown and Pat Ngongba, this season as the Blue Devils (35-3) won the ACC championship and reached the Final Four.
That last accomplishment returns him to his hometown, with the stadium being 25 or 30 minutes or so from the home where he grew up.
“It’s incredible,” Robinson said. “I mean, this is a lot for me to take in anyway. My first Final Four to be a part of, which is, in itself, already amazing, right? And then for it to be in my hometown, like for my family to be here, has been really cool. It just feels like home. It feels great to be back here.”
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Steve Wiseman has covered Duke athletics since 2010 for the Durham Herald-Sun and Raleigh News & Observer. In the Associated Press Sports Editors national contest, he’s placed in the top 10 in beat writing in 2019, 2021 and 2022, breaking news in 2019 and explanatory writing in 2018. Previously, Steve worked for The State (Columbia, SC), Herald-Journal (Spartanburg, S.C.), The Sun Herald (Biloxi, Miss.), Charlotte Observer and Hickory (NC) Daily Record covering beats including the NFL’s Carolina Panthers and New Orleans Saints, University of South Carolina athletics and the S.C. General Assembly. He’s won numerous state-level press association awards. Steve graduated from Illinois State University in 1989.