The Duke basketball program is entering year four under Jon Scheyer with hopes of cutting down the nets in March once again. The Blue Devils are viewed as one of the top, if not the top, programs in the ACC heading into the 2025-26 campaign. Although Scheyer will be dealing with a very young and inexperienced squad, he and his staff brought in the top-ranked 2025 recruiting class mixed with a slew of key returners. There are certainly some question marks surrounding the Duke program heading into the season, but the Blue Devils are likely the most talented team in the ACC on paper.
Duke is the favorite to win the 2026 ACC Championship according to the betting markets
According to FanDuel, the Blue Devils are the favorites to win the 2026 ACC regular season Championship. An ACC Tournament win would mark Scheyer's third conference tournament crown in four seasons as Duke's head coach.
2026 ACC regular season championship odds
Duke: +155
Louisville: +220
North Carolina: +700
NC State: +750
Clemson: +1900
Virginia: +2200
As the betting markets indicate, Duke and Louisville are widely viewed as the cream of the crop in the ACC this season. After the Blue Devils and Cardinals, practically every other squad in the conference is littered with uncertainty. But, how easy will Duke's path be?
Duke will face Louisville and North Carolina twice this season. Pat Kelsey has completely reshaped the Louisville program after a disastrous era with Kenny Payne, and the Cards now enter 2025-26 projected to be a preseason top-ten team.
In ESPN's most recent preseason top 25 rankings, Louisville came in at No. 7 and Duke came in at No. 12. Although Pat Kelsey's club is ranked slightly higher than Scheyer's, it feels like both squads have fairly equal potential.
The advantage Louisville has is experience. Kelsey went nuts in the transfer portal this offseason and is bringing back two of his top five scorers from a season ago. Although Duke likely has more talent, it's much more inexperienced and will be relying on fairly unproven players for the most part.
Both matchups between Duke and Louisville this season will be good ones, but the betting markets say Duke is the favorite heading into the season.