{"id":79686,"date":"2026-04-09T14:27:30","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T14:27:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/isport.com.ng\/?p=79686"},"modified":"2026-04-09T14:27:30","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T14:27:30","slug":"burning-concern-arises-as-duke-handles-offseason","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/isport.com.ng\/?p=79686","title":{"rendered":"Burning Concern Arises As Duke Handles Offseason"},"content":{"rendered":"

Burning Concern Arises As Duke Handles Offseason<\/h1>\n
The Blue Devils have to navigate this path correctly.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
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Over the past few years under head coach Jon Scheyer, the Duke basketball program has functioned by bringing in elite young talent mixed with complementary pieces around those young stars.<\/p>\n

The 2026-27 campaign will be no different. Duke is bringing in the No. 1 overall recruiting class for the third season in a row, headlined by three 5-star prospects: Cameron Williams (No. 2 overall player according to\u00a0247Sports 2026 Composite Rankings<\/u><\/a>), Deron Rippey Jr. (No. 1 point guard according to 247Sports), and Bryson Howard (No. 12 overall player according to 247Sports).<\/p>\n

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However, this recruiting class differs from others over the past decade or so in that there doesn’t appear to be much fully polished talent. Several of the top recruits in this class, including Williams, are viewed as elite talents but still have a way to go in their development.<\/p>\n

That makes roster retention that much more important for Scheyer and Co. this time around.<\/p>\n

Duke Needs To Retain Key Players Now More Than Ever<\/h2>\n

The only guaranteed exits for the\u00a0Duke<\/u><\/a>\u00a0program right now are Maliq Brown and Cameron Boozer. Nik Khamenia and Darren Harris have also elected to enter the NCAA Transfer Portal.<\/p>\n

That leaves Isaiah Evans, Patrick Ngongba, Dame Sarr, Cayden Boozer, and Caleb Foster with intriguing decisions to make about another year in Durham or departing from the program via the portal or the NBA Draft.<\/p>\n

With, at least as it appears, few All-American-caliber talents in the 2026 recruiting class, it becomes much more crucial for the Blue Devils to bring back their key veterans.<\/p>\n

247Sports Director of Scouting Adam Finkelstein laid out how important it is for Duke to bring back its most important pieces.<\/p>\n

“Well, they once again have one of the best incoming freshman classes in the country,”\u00a0Finkelstein said.<\/u>\u00a0<\/a>“The problem is that next year’s freshman class is going to be nowhere near this year’s freshman class. There’s no Cam Boozer, there’s no Cooper Flagg, there’s no Kon Knueppel. And so that means that player retention is going to be more important than ever for Jon Scheyer.”<\/p>\n

Decisions Hard To Gauge for Duke Stars<\/h2>\n

This year’s freshman class was arguably the most talented across the board of any freshman class in the history of college basketball. The 2026 class will likely not come close to the level of star power from the 2025 recruiting class.<\/p>\n

It’s fair to say Sarr and Foster are more likely than not to return to Duke. As for Boozer, the portal could come into play with a potential Foster return and Rippey’s arrival.<\/p>\n

Evans and Ngongba not only have the most impactful decisions to make of any Blue Devil, but also the most interesting to follow. Both are viewed as projected late first-round picks in the 2026 NBA Draft, but there’s a real chance both could make more money in college next season.<\/p>\n

The pair is projected to go around picks 24-30, meaning their rookie NBA salary would be somewhere around $2 million to $4 million if selected in that range. With a return to Duke, that paycheck could certainly be higher.<\/p>\n

There doesn’t seem to be a timetable on these decisions, but they will obviously be crucial for Scheyer and Co.’s plans moving forward. If the Blue Devils can retain Evans,\u00a0Ngongba,<\/u><\/a>\u00a0Foster, and Sarr, they might have the best rotation in college basketball with the recruiting class coming in.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Burning Concern Arises As Duke Handles Offseason The Blue Devils have to navigate this path correctly. 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