The Duke basketball program is now in a prime position to make its first big splash in the transfer portal as Washington State transfer shooting guard Cedric Coward has announced his final two collegiate options: Duke and Alabama.
Washington State transfer Cedric Coward has cut his list to Alabama and Duke, per his agent Todd Ramasar of @LifeSportsAgncy.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) April 22, 2025
Coward's primary focus is still on the NBA Draft after he picks a school.
Averaged 17.7 PPG and 7.0 RPG in six games last season prior to injury.
Last week, Coward released his final five schools, which included Kansas, Washington, and Florida, but the 6'6 guard has now narrowed his list down to two.
However, per Coward's representation, his main focus is still on the 2025 NBA Draft. While testing the waters, Coward announced that he will play for either the Blue Devils or Crimson Tide if he was to return to college for the 2025-26 season.
Coward began his college career at Division III Willamette University before spending two seasons at Eastern Washington. He spent the 2024-25 campaign with Washington State.
The senior only played six games with Wazzu this past season due to injury, averaging 17.7 points, seven rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 1.7 blocks a game on 55.7% shooting from the field and 40% shooting from three-point range.
In 2024, he was a unanimous All-Big Sky First Team selection when with Eastern Washington.
The Fresno, CA native is currently the #21 overall player in the transfer portal and #8 shooting guard per On3's Transfer Portal Industry Rankings. He's the #5 overall player in the portal and #3 shooting guard still available.
This is a huge development for Jon Scheyer and his program, as although Coward's primary focus is this summer's NBA Draft, he's not seen as a highly-touted prospect. ESPN has Coward ranked as the #55 overall 2025 NBA Draft prospect, which would put him on the verge of potentially not being selected at all.
The pickup of Coward would be a huge scoring and experience boost for the 2025-26 Blue Devils after the entire starting five departed from this past season. Tyrese Proctor, Kon Knueppel, and Cooper Flagg have all declared for the NBA Draft, and Khaman Maluach is expected to do so soon.
As of right now, the starting backcourt for the Blue Devils would likely be Caleb Foster and Cayden Boozer. Isaiah Evans hasn't made a decision yet whether he is coming back to Duke or not, but with the portal closing today, the odds Evans is back in Durham are much higher.
Darren Harris also announced his return for a sophomore season.
Scheyer did great backcourt work in the portal last season, bringing in Sion James from Tulane as a graduate transfer. Coward would be a huge boost on both ends of the floor for the Blue Devils in 2025-26, and Duke is one of the two collegiate programs he is considering if he were to return to college.