The Duke basketball team could be adding more opponents to its schedule.
Conference realignment has officially hit the Atlantic Coast Conference and could have a direct impact on the Duke basketball schedule.
Multiple reports surfaced on Monday stating that the league has continued to talk about adding Stanford, California, and Southern Methodist amid the presumptive collapse of the PAC-12 and expansion of the SEC and Big Ten.
ESPN’s Pete Thamel said that there is “continued momentum toward” adding the schools and while it’s unknown at this time what year the institutions would join the ACC, it’s likely that it would begin in the 2024-25 athletic season.
A meeting between the league president’s was scheduled to take place on Monday night to continue to further the discussion about expansion in the league but it was postponed following the tragic shooting that took place on the campus of the University of North Carolina earlier in the afternoon.
Sources caution that nothing is finalized and the details are “only in pencil” as of now. Expect a decision either way this week. Officials are still working specifically on how to divide the pool of money that would be spilt up among ACC members after the three schools join.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) August 28, 2023
Thamel continued by saying “nothing is finalized and the details are ‘only in pencil’ as of now,” but the expectation, before the meeting was postponed on Monday, was a decision would be reached this week.
Duke basketball conference schedule could see major changes
The addition of Stanford, California, and SMU would certainly shake up future Duke basketball schedules as the Blue Devils will currently play six teams (North Carolina, Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, Notre Dame, Louisville, and Pittsburgh) both at home and on the road this season.
Issues could arise given the length of the trip teams in the current formant of the ACC would have to take in order to play in California potentially twice per season — regardless of the sport — and losing other long time rivalries in the conference because of the additions.
ALSO READ: Kyle Filipowski not shying away from lofty expectations
Duke has played four games against SMU and California in its program history and three games against Stanford.
The Blue Devils hold a 3-1 record against the Mustangs but are just 2-2 against the Golden Bears and 1-2 when facing the Cardinal, respectively.