Duke's priorities for the 2027 class have been pretty clear so far. Jon Scheyer has already landed a commitment from elite wing Kager Knueppel, has his eyes set on 5-star center Lewis Uvwo to be the rim-protecting big he always covets in his system, and has been making a major push for 5-star guard Beckham Black.
Duke's top high school target, period, regardless of class, however, has been 5-star forward AJ Williams, who until Tuesday was the No. 1-ranked player in the 2028 class. He isn't any longer.
Because on Tuesday, Williams officially announced his reclassification into the 2027 class, per multiple reports:
NEWS: 2028’s No. 1 overall recruit, AJ Williams, is reclassifying into the 2027 class, he told @Rivals.
— Joe Tipton (@JoeTipton) August 4, 2026
The 6-7 wing holds 25 offers, including Duke, North Carolina, Auburn, BYU, Kansas, Georgia, and more. https://t.co/caEZmitVRB pic.twitter.com/Z0n6FL9FvQ
Duke will aggressively pursue AJ Williams after his reclassification into 2027
The Hampton, Georgia native is one of the most highly sought-after recruits in high school basketball. He holds offers from elite programs all over the country, and his recruitment is about to ramp up a whole other notch following his decision to reclass.
Scheyer made it clear that Williams was a top priority for Duke by extending him an offer last month. The Blue Devils have been hot on his trail for a while now. It's rare for Scheyer to hand out an offer so quickly. Williams and Colton Hiller are the only 2028 prospects to hold a Duke offer at this point. That's now just Hiller, with Williams moving up a class.
Everyone covets a Duke offer. Scheyer doesn't hand them out to just anyone. If you get an offer, it's because Scheyer wants you. Typically, when Scheyer has prioritized recruits, he's come out on top. There may not be a better recruiter in college basketball now than him.
Williams is an unbelievable talent. Typically, reclass guys fall pretty significantly in the rankings, at least early on. That's not the case for him. He dropped a little, but is still a Top 5 overall player in the composite.
Duke has long been seen as the favorite for Williams, but it won't be easy getting to the finish line with him. BYU isn't afraid to open the checkbook, as everyone saw with AJ Dybantsa last year. John Calipari and Arkansas are arguably the only program recruiting on the same level as Duke overall, and you can't discount the allure of staying home and following the Anthony Edwards path by playing for Georgia.
It will be a challenging recruitment, but it's hard to bet against Scheyer. For now, a dream recruiting class of Williams-Black-Uvwo-Knueppel is very much alive.
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