Justise Winslow's unique makeup

For more days in high school than Bianca Winslow can remember, she'd awake in a haze to music being played a bit too loud. Those times when it really disrupted her attempt to savor that last hour of sleep, she'd yell out to her brother to turn it down.

Justise Winslow was just getting turned up.

Winslow, along with Duke's other two starting freshmen, Jahlil Okafor and Tyus Jones, has made the transition from high school to college look far too easy at times this season. Ever since Winslow realized he had a future in basketball, he's been obsessed with improving his game.

Even at 5:30 in the morning.

"Once his music is playing in the morning, that's how you know," Bianca said. "Justise is up, he's about to go workout, he's about to go to school. Whatever it took for him to get his mind right to go workout, it was fine."

Bianca Winslow, now a junior guard at Houston, watched her brother rise so often for early morning workouts that she eventually joined him.

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski saw the same dedication when Justise Winslow arrived on campus. Before Krzyzewski left the country with the U.S. National Team, Winslow's outside shooting touch was a bit suspect. By the time Krzyzewski got back, it was steady.

Winslow, who averages 10.7 points and 4.5 rebounds per game, is making 46.5 percent of his 2-point shots, and he's shooting 37.3 percent from 3-point range.

"He felt like his jump shot wasn't his strong suit yet, so he was always in the gym after working on his jump shot," Krzyzewski said. "And it's come a long way since he got here, and that says a lot about his maturity and his work ethic. He's more advanced than your typical freshman."

Genetically speaking, he probably should be.

Winslow's father, Rickie, was a member of Phi Slamma Jamma as a freshman on Houston's 1984 Final Four team. He started all four years at small forward for the Cougars. Although his NBA career was brief, he played professionally overseas until 2000.

Justise Winslow didn't cling to basketball because of his dad. His parents divorced when he was in grade school, and his mother, Robin Davis, got full custody.

Davis fully embraced the African proverb "it takes a village to raise a child." She liked the idea of her children learning from other strong role models.

Beverly Mosby was one of those people. She was the unofficial team mom for the Houston Jaguars, Winslow's third-grade team, on which her grandson played. She assisted the traveling team until the time of her passing in 2012.

Miss Bev, as Winslow called her, gave freely of her time and resources and was dedicated to helping the kids on the team. She would pick them up and take them to practice. She often gave money to players who didn't have money for food on road trips. And her encouraging words to Winslow -- that there were no limits to what he could do -- really stuck with him.

"Justise's goal was to get to the NBA, and he always talked about wanting to have Miss Bev at all of his games," said his brother Josh Winslow, who is a rising senior defensive back at Dartmouth. "I think he's always had a soft spot for Miss Bev."

When Justise Winslow made the announcement that he would attend Duke, before he threw on the Blue Devils' ball cap, he choked back tears while acknowledging Mosby's role in his development.

"She really just inspired me and just found this dream inside of me through her," Winslow said. "[Her passing] was a sad moment, but I just dedicate my life in basketball to her."

Winslow, like a lot of adolescent boys in Texas, grew up loving football. He even admitted to wishing he still played. But he stopped after middle school to focus on basketball. And when you live in Houston and are serious about basketball, the only way to make a name for yourself is to play in a John Lucas-sponsored event.

Lucas, the former Houston Rocket player and longtime NBA coach, provides all kinds of clinics and training for elite players. He also works with NBA players in the offseason who go to Houston to train.

"You definitely gauge your game when you go up there," Winslow said. "But you try to compete and just work on your weaknesses and try to display your strengths."

Not just anyone in high school can play with the pros though. Winslow was one of the few -- a group that also included Texas center Cameron Ridley and Kentucky guards Andrew and Aaron Harrison -- Lucas would allow to participate.

Winslow competed against NBA players such as Wilson Chandler and J.R. Smith and found out fast just how far he had to go. He was also pushed by peers such as Kansas forward Kelly Oubre Jr.

"Coach Lucas kind of threw me in there," Winslow said. "It was kind of rough at first, but it made me a better player. I had to definitely realize things I had to improve on. It kind of woke me up and opened my eyes."

What he learned from playing against professionals helped Winslow morph into a versatile player Krzyzewski could use at almost every position.

Winslow's role on the Blue Devils just grew in importance after Thursday's dismissal of Rasheed Sulaimon. Sulaimon, who is also a Houston native, helped convince Winslow to sign with Duke. Sulaimon's absence leaves Winslow as the lone true small forward on the team. Those who have observed Winslow through the years would say he's up to the task.

Matt Howard, his trainer, saw something special early.

Howard first met Winslow while working for Lucas and has become a mentor of sorts. He was usually on the other side of the text or phone call, meeting Winslow for those early-morning workouts before the school day began.

"When I saw Justise in the seventh or eighth grade, I knew he was going to be special," Howard said. "He had a high basketball IQ and really knew how to play at that young of an age. It was one of those things where you thought, 'Yeah, this kid is going to be going somewhere.'"

Most freshmen arrive on campus either needing to be slimmed down or beefed up. Winslow needed neither. At 6-foot-6, 225 pounds, he was already solid. Those physical attributes jumped out at Krzyzewski first.

Winslow's play has made the lasting impression.

"He's efficient, he doesn't need the ball long," Krzyzewski said. "Justise is a really easy guy to play with because the ball doesn't die in his hands. Usually, when he has it, he has it for a short period and something good happens with him."