Duke basketball’s roster for the 2025-26 season is set after a fairly chaotic offseason. From signing big-time recruits late, such as Dame Sarr and Sebastian Wilkins, to finding a gem in the transfer portal in Cedric Coward, to losing Coward to the NBA Draft, Jon Scheyer and his staff have dealt with tons of roster turnover throughout the offseason.
Now with the rotation set for next season, let’s take a look at the Blue Devils’ projected starting five.
PG – Caleb Foster – Junior
Foster will have another opportunity to break onto the college basketball scene after a disappointing sophomore campaign, one where Foster began the season as a starter but was eventually sent to the bench in favor of Sion James. The 6’5 North Carolina native has a high motor with great perimeter defensive skills, and will provide much-needed veteran leadership for this Blue Devils team next season. Foster can also be a consistent three-point shooter, despite his numbers dipping as a sophomore. As a rookie, Foster shot 40.6% from three as opposed to 34.2% in his second season with Duke. With all of the talented shooters surrounding Foster, he’ll have the space to knock down outside shots at an efficient clip.
SG – Isaiah Evans – Sophomore
Evans will also enter the 2025-26 season as a top breakout candidate around college hoops following a rookie campaign where he established himself as one of the best shooters in the nation. The 6’6 wing knocked down 41.6% of his threes as a freshman on 4.1 attempts a night, both off-the-catch and off-the-dribble. Listed at 175 pounds as a rookie, adding a little weight will benefit Evans greatly, especially on the defensive side of the ball in his elevated role as a sophomore. The sharpshooter was a huge return for Scheyer, as Evans tested the 2025 NBA Draft waters with reports also surfacing of his value if he were to enter the transfer portal. With his elevated scoring role next season, Evans can boost his stock into lottery status if his defense on the perimeter improves.
SF – Dame Sarr – Freshman
The starting three spot is wide open for the taking for the Blue Devils next season, but Sarr gets the nod due to his experience playing at the professional level for FC Barcelona. As a pro, Sarr averaged nine minutes per game through 15 Euro League games and another 12 in Liga ACB. In that action, the guard averaged 3.5 points and 1.1 rebounds on 53.7% shooting from the field and 44.8% shooting from three-point range. Sarr will be another elite outside shooter added to this Blue Devils team, and at 6’6, he adds to the defensive length that Scheyer has prided his squads on for the last few seasons.
PF – Cameron Boozer – Freshman
Boozer will be Duke’s go-to guy offensively right away and has the chance to be the best rookie in college basketball next season. The top three guys in the incoming 2025 recruiting class, AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, and Boozer, are one of the most talented trios of top freshmen heading into college basketball in a long time. Boozer became the first player to win Mr. Basketball USA twice since LeBron James and led his high school team, Columbus (FL), to a Chipotle Boys National Championship this past season. In his senior season of high school, Boozer averaged 22.1 points, 11.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.9 steals, and 1.5 blocks a game. He also tallied the only double-double in the McDonald’s All-American game with 16 points and 12 boards in 23 minutes of action.
C – Patrick Ngongba II – Sophomore
Ngongba was seen in a Duke social media post wearing a walking boot, which is worrisome for the program after the rising sophomore dealt with a foot injury as a freshman, limiting his time for almost the entire season. The 6’11 big also missed the majority of his senior year of high school at Paul VI Catholic (VA), dealing with that foot injury as well. Center depth isn’t a strength for the Blue Devils next season, and Ngongba will likely be expected to play significant minutes as long as he can stay healthy. He showed great rim-protecting ability and ability to operate as a roller effectively, but his offensive arsenal will certainly need work throughout the offseason.
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
