Duke basketball jumping in water with Kentucky, UNC for five-star recruit

The Duke basketball program could be battling Kentucky, North Carolina for prized recruit. 

The current leaders for five-star guard Ian Jackson appears to be the Kentucky Wildcats but the Duke basketball program continues to mull its interest in the Cardinal Hayes (NY) standout.

Jon Scheyer and his coaching staff will be making  the trip to New York to get a look at the 6-foot-4 shooting guard this week, according to multiple recruiting insiders, despite not extending an offer to five-star prospect.

Duke started showing interest in Ian Jackson in mid-June but the five-time National Champions have yet to formally extend a scholarship offer.

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Kentucky and head coach Jon Calipari were in New York on Tuesday, along with Alabama, Auburn, and Seton Hall.

Arkansas, North Carolina, UCLA, Kansas, and Oregon are also expected to visit Jackson this week.

Ian Jackson is ranked as the No. 2 player in the Class of 2024, according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings, as well as the No. 1 shooting guard in his class and the top player in the state of New York.

Jackson does not have a 247Sports Crystal Ball next to his name but a Rivals FutureCast and the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine both heavily favor Kentucky.

Duke basketball with complicated recruitment of Ian Jackson

David Sisk, who covers North Carolina and Kentucky recruiting for Rivals, reported that there is “lots of buzz around him for a reclass to 2023.”

Duke already has the top ranked recruiting class in 2023 and furthered their advantage on back-to-back top ranked recruiting classes after four-star forward TJ Power committed to the Blue Devils last week.

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Five-star power forward Mackenzie Mgbako, five-star power forward Sean Stewart, five-star point guard Caleb Foster, and five-star shooting guard Jared McCain round out the Duke class for next year.

The Blue Devils do not yet have a commitment in the Class of 2024 and seems unlikely that they would extend an offer to Ian Jackson if he is determined to reclassify.