Rob Kinnan/USA TODAY Sports
Duke men's basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski called the DWI-related charges facing two of his players, junior Michael Savarino and freshman Paolo Banchero, "two different situations" after Duke's 92-52 win over Gardner-Webb on Tuesday night.
"It's two different situations. Two entirely different situations," Krzyzewski said in defense of starting Banchero, who's considered a top prospect for the 2022 NBA draft. "Headlines might make it look the same—it’s not. The decisions we made are in conjunction with our authorities, my superiors. We took action and will continue to take action."
Banchero, who started Tuesday night's game, and Savarino, who is Krzyzewski's grandson, face charges related to DWI after being pulled over by police for running a stop sign in the early hours of Sunday morning. Savarino was arrested on suspicion of DWI, while Banchero is reportedly facing a charge of aiding and abetting DWI.
"We had a violation of our standards," Krzyzewski said, "and we'll handle that internally."
According to the Durham Herald-Sun/Raleigh News & Observer's Steve Wiseman, Savarino was given a breathalyzer test after showing signs of impairment, which showed a blood alcohol content of .08, after running a stop sign. Savarino was taken into police custody while Banchero was "released at the site of the traffic stop," Wiseman wrote.
Banchero tallied 10 points and eight rebounds in Tuesday's victory.
