5-star PG Deron Rippey Jr. gives picture-perfect reason for picking Duke

Choosing the Duke Blue Devils over a slew of other blue blood college basketball programs, five-star point guard Deron Rippey Jr. announced his commitment today.

Now set to start his career in Durham in less than a year, all eyes are on Rippey's senior season and just how much hype he can garner before officially setting foot on campus.

When Rippey committed, picking the Blue Devils over other perennial powerhouse programs like the North Carolina Tar Heels, Kentucky Wildcats, and Kansas Jayhawks, he gave a flawless explanation of why he couldn't resist Duke's calling.

Rippey Jr. is going to be perfect fit at Duke

Pulling out leather jackets that "The Brotherhood" on the Duke basketball logo, Rippey and his family made their alliance clear: the five-star point guard was going to be a Blue Devil.

"I want to play at the highest of levels," Rippey said on picking Duke. "That's always been my dream when it comes to playing Division-I basketball. I want to go to a school that competes for a National Championship, and I want to make an immediate impact."

Clearly, this guy gets it, and he knows that he is going to outperform his expectations once he arrives at Duke.

"When I come to town, they're getting a winner," Rippey said in his message to the Duke fanbase. "They're getting a competitor, and they're getting a leader."

With his commitment, the Blue Devils' class of 2026 moved up to the No. 1 group in the nation, becoming Duke's third consecutive recruiting class to stand atop the national rankings.

Rippey joined five-star power forward Cameron Williams, five-star small forward Bryson Howard, and four-star center Maxime Meyer in Duke head coach Jon Scheyer's upcoming class of recruits.