Duke basketball head coach Jon Scheyer and his staff have already landed three commitments through the class of 2026 early signing period, but they might not be done. 5-star point guard Deron Rippey Jr. recently announced his final five schools, which include the Blue Devils, NC State, Tennessee, Miami, and Texas. Now, more breaking news has dropped on the elite recruit: Deron Rippey Sr., Deron's father, recently announced that a commitment date for his son will be announced soon. The exact date wasn't revealed, but Rippey Sr. hinted at it being sooner rather than later. All three of the Blue Devils' 2026 pledges thus far are frontcourt pieces, so adding a top guard to add to the mix would be a major addition to Scheyer's already stellar recruiting class.
So far, Duke has gotten commitments from 5-star forwards Cameron Williams and Bryson Howard, along with Canadian seven-footer Maxime Meyer. In addition to Rippey, the Blue Devils are also in contention for 5-star guard Jordan Smith Jr. Smith took an official visit to Durham for Countdown to Craziness, along with Williams, and shortly after, received a crystal ball prediction to Duke.
5-star guard Deron Rippey Jr.'s father announces commitment date will be coming soon
Rippey had one of the busiest falls of any top recruit in the 2026 class, taking eight official visits from late August to early November before cutting his list from 10 to five. The 6'2, 175-pound guard is the No. 12 overall player, No. 1 point guard, and No. 1 player out of the state of New Jersey according to the 247Sports 2026 Composite Rankings.
Announcement Date Is Coming Soon! https://t.co/9Y17BYLHbg
— Deron Rippey Sr. (@rippey_deron) November 24, 2025
Scheyer took an in-home visit with Rippey in early September, and he took his official visit to Duke from October 21st to the 23rd. He was also in attendance at Madison Square Garden for the Blue Devils' Champions Classic victory over Kansas.
“Duke is great, man,"Rippey told On3's Jamie Shaw in a recent interview. "Jon Scheyer just got his extension. They had five NBA draft picks last year, so that’s obviously eye-opening and eye-catching for me. You know, being able to go there and potentially have a chance to follow in the footsteps of some of those people that got drafted.”
Rippey has already taken official visits to all five schools still in the running, and an ultimate commitment from the nation's top point guard should be coming soon.