2026 Men's Basketball Recruiting

JasonEvans said:
Just sayin... if Cedric Coward is in the NBA rather than Durham, there are certainly scenarios where Foster and Cayden are starting together in the backcourt.
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Yep, very true. I made this same point earlier. But i suspect Jon has a backup plan ready to activate to bring in another starter-quality transfer if it becomes clear Coward is gone.

The main problem with starting both Cayden and Caleb is who plays those backup ballhandler minutes when they rest? And what happens if one gets injured? Harris and Evans could fill in, but we really need another player.
 
SkyBrickey said:
Yep, very true. I made this same point earlier. But i suspect Jon has a backup plan ready to activate to bring in another starter-quality transfer if it becomes clear Coward is gone.

The main problem with starting both Cayden and Caleb is who plays those backup ballhandler minutes when they rest? And what happens if one gets injured? Harris and Evans could fill in, but we really need another player.
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Unless we bring in another ballhandler, I expect at least one of Cayden or Caleb (or Coward, potentially) to be on the floor pretty much all the time. They could still both start, but they'd have to stagger their rest. The plan for dealing with injuries would be to not get injured.
 
SkyBrickey said:
The main problem with starting both Cayden and Caleb is who plays those backup ballhandler minutes when they rest?
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They would simply not rest at the same time. Just because two guys start together doesn't mean they come out at the same time.

SkyBrickey said:
And what happens if one gets injured? Harris and Evans could fill in, but we really need another player.
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This is the bigger issue. Even with Coward (who isn't a ballhandler), we're really light on ballhandlers. I hope we're adding one of those one way or the other.
 
SkyBrickey said:
Yep, very true. I made this same point earlier. But i suspect Jon has a backup plan ready to activate to bring in another starter-quality transfer if it becomes clear Coward is gone.

The main problem with starting both Cayden and Caleb is who plays those backup ballhandler minutes when they rest? And what happens if one gets injured? Harris and Evans could fill in, but we really need another player.
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Cayden 30 mpg at PG. Foster 10 minutes at PG and 10 minutes at SG. Cameron plays as a point forward much of the time, similar to Flagg.
 
SkyBrickey said:
Yep, very true. I made this same point earlier. But i suspect Jon has a backup plan ready to activate to bring in another starter-quality transfer if it becomes clear Coward is gone.

The main problem with starting both Cayden and Caleb is who plays those backup ballhandler minutes when they rest? And what happens if one gets injured? Harris and Evans could fill in, but we really need another player.
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Too bad Coach doesn’t have any eligibility left. Maybe we can find a loophole? 🤔
 
It may have no bearing on Wilkins' decision, but Maryland assistant coach Wabissa Bede played for the Mass Rivals AAU team, the same team that Wilkins and 2 other players on Maryland's roster played for. A tweet popped up in my feed that Maryland thinks they have developed a pipeline to this program through Bebe. Another article states that Wilkins and the 2 other players are close friends.
 
Owen Meany said:
It may have no bearing on Wilkins' decision, but Maryland assistant coach Wabissa Bede played for the Mass Rivals AAU team, the same team that Wilkins and 2 other players on Maryland's roster played for. A tweet popped up in my feed that Maryland thinks they have developed a pipeline to this program through Bebe. Another article states that Wilkins and the 2 other players are close friends.
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Thanks for sharing this information. I still feel like this is more of an "AND" situation than an "either or". I still see a situation where this is all true AND Wilkins also has enough personal morals and standards to not want to go to Maryland. LOL!
 
Class of 2026 Recruiting Reset

I have been waiting to post this for a while. The Class of 2025 finally appears set now that Dame Sarr and Sebastian Wilkins have committed. Looking ahead to the rising seniors, let's begin by taking a look at the projected 2025-26 roster. I like to group the players into tiers based on likelihood of staying or going.

Definitely Gone: Maliq Brown, Cameron Boozer

This is the easiest group to project. Brown will exhaust his eligibility while Boozer the Taller is almost certainly going to the NBA Draft.

Probably Gone: Isaiah Evans, Dame Sarr

Evans tested the NBA waters this past spring while Sarr is taking a step down in competition level to gain a larger role. Both are poised to be big contributors to the team next season. If all goes according to their own plans, they will position themselves for the 1st round of the NBA Draft in 2026.

Maybe Gone: Caleb Foster, Patrick Ngongba

I want to put these two into their own category for different reasons. Foster is a hard case. He lost his starting role and playing time before clawing his way back into the rotation late last season. He has an opportunity to carve out a large role next season. Maybe he just loves Duke and will stay all 4 years. Maybe he will decide to move on if he can't carve out a larger role as a Junior. Ngongba is expected to play a large role next season. I put him here as he might play his way into a weaker NBA Draft pool as next season's Danny Wolf, a passing and scoring big with limited athleticism. He might be a 4-yesr college player or have a shorter tenure if the interior defense and playmaking skills show up.

Probably Returning: Darren Harris, Cayden Boozer, Nik Khamenia, Sebastian Wilkins

This might be the hardest group to predict. Who would have thought Kon Knueppel would play his way into the top 10 range of the 2025 NBA Draft? Perhaps someone from this group will blow up. Perhaps one or more will transfer out. I have no idea. This is my gut feeling, but I think this is the group (plus 1-2 from the Probably Returning group) that will make up a large part of the 2026-27 roster.

Current Offers (according to 247 Sports)

Jordan Smith: 6'2" G
Brandon McCoy, 6'4" G
Christian Collins, 6'8" F
Miikka Murrinen, 6'10" F

Smith is the shortest player Jon Scheyer has recruited to date, but he is very athletic and has a long wingspan that allows him to play much bigger. The Paul VI product is a scoring guard known as a downhill driver that is also a terror on defense. Think Donovan Mitchell as a player comp.

McCoy and Collins are teammates in California. McCoy was considered one of the top PGs in the nation, although he has been injured much of the last year and is skipping the summer travel circuit. Like Smith, McCoy plays on both ends.

Collins is the most recent offer. He is an athletic forward that appears to be the new frontcourt target in place of Murrinen. I haven't seen any tweets or reports lately that Duke is still pursuing the tall Finn. Collins may be shorter, but he is an above-the rim player that can extend his scoring to the 3-point line as his jumper continues to improve.

Beyond the three of Smith, McCoy, and Collins, a few other prospects seem to be generating interest. That includes 6'5" G Kohl Rosario. This is the time of year when the staff watch players at summer events and refine their recruiting Big Board. We'll see what new names appear on the radar.
 
DavidBenAkiva said:
Class of 2026 Recruiting Reset

I have been waiting to post this for a while. The Class of 2025 finally appears set now that Dame Sarr and Sebastian Wilkins have committed. Looking ahead to the rising seniors, let's begin by taking a look at the projected 2025-26 roster. I like to group the players into tiers based on likelihood of staying or going.

Definitely Gone: Maliq Brown, Cameron Boozer

This is the easiest group to project. Brown will exhaust his eligibility while Boozer the Taller is almost certainly going to the NBA Draft.

Probably Gone: Isaiah Evans, Dame Sarr

Evans tested the NBA waters this past spring while Sarr is taking a step down in competition level to gain a larger role. Both are poised to be big contributors to the team next season. If all goes according to their own plans, they will position themselves for the 1st round of the NBA Draft in 2026.

Maybe Gone: Caleb Foster, Patrick Ngongba

I want to put these two into their own category for different reasons. Foster is a hard case. He lost his starting role and playing time before clawing his way back into the rotation late last season. He has an opportunity to carve out a large role next season. Maybe he just loves Duke and will stay all 4 years. Maybe he will decide to move on if he can't carve out a larger role as a Junior. Ngongba is expected to play a large role next season. I put him here as he might play his way into a weaker NBA Draft pool as next season's Danny Wolf, a passing and scoring big with limited athleticism. He might be a 4-yesr college player or have a shorter tenure if the interior defense and playmaking skills show up.

Probably Returning: Darren Harris, Cayden Boozer, Nik Khamenia, Sebastian Wilkins

This might be the hardest group to predict. Who would have thought Kon Knueppel would play his way into the top 10 range of the 2025 NBA Draft? Perhaps someone from this group will blow up. Perhaps one or more will transfer out. I have no idea. This is my gut feeling, but I think this is the group (plus 1-2 from the Probably Returning group) that will make up a large part of the 2026-27 roster.

Current Offers (according to 247 Sports)

Jordan Smith: 6'2" G
Brandon McCoy, 6'4" G
Christian Collins, 6'8" F
Miikka Murrinen, 6'10" F

Smith is the shortest player Jon Scheyer has recruited to date, but he is very athletic and has a long wingspan that allows him to play much bigger. The Paul VI product is a scoring guard known as a downhill driver that is also a terror on defense. Think Donovan Mitchell as a player comp.

McCoy and Collins are teammates in California. McCoy was considered one of the top PGs in the nation, although he has been injured much of the last year and is skipping the summer travel circuit. Like Smith, McCoy plays on both ends.

Collins is the most recent offer. He is an athletic forward that appears to be the new frontcourt target in place of Murrinen. I haven't seen any tweets or reports lately that Duke is still pursuing the tall Finn. Collins may be shorter, but he is an above-the rim player that can extend his scoring to the 3-point line as his jumper continues to improve.

Beyond the three of Smith, McCoy, and Collins, a few other prospects seem to be generating interest. That includes 6'5" G Kohl Rosario. This is the time of year when the staff watch players at summer events and refine their recruiting Big Board. We'll see what new names appear on the radar.
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This is a great breakdown for next year. I agree with all your player groupings.

If we assume the 23 and 25 off seasons are more the norm - and 24 was an outlier - then it also points to 4-6 rotation returnees. A 3-4 man recruiting class. Maybe 1 key player from the portal. This is exactly the roster construction strategy that Jon described to Bilas last fall.
 
crote said:
I was looking at 247's list of Duke offers for the 2026 class, and this caught my eye: a Duke offer to 7'3" Italian center Luigi Suigo. 247 also lists offers from BYU, Illinois, and KU.

A few minutes of idle searching has found nothing to substantiate a Duke offer, although he apparently took an official visit to Illinois earlier this month. He most recently played for Armani Milano's U18 team. His stats aren't overwhelming but the buzz seems to be that he has shooting potential for his size. He just turned 18 in January, which mean's he will turn 19 next year and therefore be eligible for the 2026 NBA draft, so if he's going to play NCAA ball he's either he's a reclass candidate (for next season) or he's not going to declare at his earliest eligibility.

Ragazzi, chissa di Luigi?

Edit to add that On3 doesn't seem to have a profile for Luigi, but Rivals does. Their profile also lists a Duke offer (along with Illinois, UK, KU, and UCLA, all offers dated to this Tuesday). Rivals lists him with the Class of 2025, which makes more sense given his age.
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brevity said:
Christian Collins (6-8 SF) is, I believe, the 6th recruit from the 2026 class who has received a Duke offer. Verbal Commits lists the other five:

Brandon McCoy Jr, 6-4 SG
Miikka Muurinen, 6-10 PF
Jordan Smith Jr, 6-2 PG
Luigi Suigo, 7-3 C
Sebastian Wilkins, 6-8 SF
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DavidBenAkiva said:
Current Offers (according to 247 Sports)

Jordan Smith: 6'2" G
Brandon McCoy, 6'4" G
Christian Collins, 6'8" F
Miikka Murrinen, 6'10" F
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Great summary, @DavidBenAkiva, but what happened to Luigi Suigo?

Earlier today, Jon Chepkevich of DraftExpress posted that Luigi made the All-Tournament Team after the EuroLeague U18 championship in Dubai.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1926613503676211275

Despite it happening within the last 24 hours half a world away, I was able to find a full replay and a box score. U18 Žalgiris Kaunas of Lithuania beat U18 EA7 Emporio Armani Milan by a score of 89-81. Luigi Suigo had 21 points (9-13 FG, 1-1 3PT), 11 rebounds, and 4 assists in the loss. His teammate and fellow All-Tournament honoree Achille Lonati had a team-high 26 points, and I mention his name just in case The Brotherhood wants to make a connection on behalf of Jayson Tatum, who could use the spare.

 
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