Let’s cut straight to the point. The only reason I’m writing this column—and the only reason you’re reading it—is to answer one question.

Will Duke win the national championship this year?

Short answer: Barring terrible luck or disaster, yes.

But it’s not because freshman point guard Kyrie Irving seems to inspire a man-crush in everyone who sees him play. It’s not because, as Seth Davis wrote for Sports Illustrated’s website, Duke “is the only [team] with no real weaknesses.” It’s not even because the Blue Devils are by far the most talented team in the country, even though they are.

No, the reason Duke will win the national championship can instead be found in a single preseason quote.

After the Blue Devils finished thrashing St. Augustine’s Oct. 23, Irving said, “We’ve been practicing really hard lately, and… our practices are a lot harder than the game.”

Four years ago, I wrote a story about the 1992 Blue Devils who won the program’s second consecutive national championship. I spoke with half a dozen players—from senior captain Brian Davis to senior walk-on Ron Burt—as well as Mike Krzyzewski and Tommy Amaker (then a Duke assistant, now the coach at Harvard). And all that any of them wanted to talk about was how hard that team practiced.

Amaker told me that he has never seen a team practice more intensely, and that Krzyzewski used to cut practice short just so that his guys wouldn’t kill each other. Brian Davis chuckled as he remembered that he and co-captain Christian Laettner “wouldn’t threaten our teammates, but we were definitely locked in.” Burt, the walk-on, lovingly described the elbows he took from Laettner and the knee that Davis planted in his chest. He said he was “terrified every day” just to be on the court.

Player after player told me that practices were so competitive for two reasons. The first was that Laettner and Davis, fiercely driven competitors and two of four players ever to make four Final Four appearances, made them that way. The second was that the players were locked in a constant battle for playing time. Even Bobby Hurley, on his way to leading the team in minutes per game, practiced “like a madman,” according to Krzyzewski.

At least in regard to their depth of talent, there are clear parallels between the two teams. Krzyzewski has the enviable task of finding playing time for each member of his star-studded backcourt, and you’ve got to believe that Seth Curry, Andre Dawkins and Tyler Thornton are going to go all-out against Singler, Smith and Irving if that’s what it takes to get on the court during the game. And Irving’s quote makes it seem like the starters haven’t backed down.

Krzyzewski himself, in an interview with Seth Davis, alluded to the benefits of having so much depth when ascribing much of Dawkins’ improvement to playing against Singler every day in practice. “You’re going to get better just to keep your head above water, because you’re matched up every day against a kid who will probably be a lottery pick,” the coach said.

We’re talking about practice. Not a game, not a game. Practice.

But it turns out that practice is where these Blue Devils may have their biggest advantage. Especially in the backcourt, Duke’s reserves are more talented than most of their opponents’ starters. Their practices can and should be more competitive than their games. Unlike last year, there’s no reason to worry about wearing the starters down.

Krzyzewski said after the St. Augustine’s game that he was not concerned about his team remaining motivated. But even if his starting five decided that one championship was enough, they still wouldn’t be able to coast—at least not in practice.