Duke basketball dumped from finalists for highly coveted 5-star guard

The Duke basketball program is still hunting for major prospects in the Class of 2025 but Meleek Thomas, a 5-star guard, will not be joining the Blue Devils.

Thomas unveiled his Top-7 finalists this week which includes UConn, Kansas, Alabama, Pittsburgh, Auburn, Kansas State, and Arkansas. The 6-foot-4 guard is listed as the No. 6 player in the senior class, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings, and recently announced that he would be transferring to Overtime Elite from Lincoln Park (Pa.) for his senior season.

He already taken visits to UConn, Pittsburgh, and Auburn but told On3 that he plans to visit Arkansas, Alabama, and Kansas with the possibility of a trip to Kansas State as well. He has not set dates for the visits but plans to complete them in the fall.

Duke was pursuing Thomas early in his recruitment, offering him in April 2023, but interest dwindled between the two sides recently.

The Blue Devils were included in the Top-12 finalists he released in 2023. Meleek Thomas said in past interviews that he grew up as a Duke fan and told Krysten Peek in 2022 the historic program was his "dream school."

Indiana, Miami, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Villanova were also in his initial group of finalists. Alabama was not included in his Top-12, but made the Top-7.

At the time of Duke's interest in Thomas, head coach Jon Scheyer was targeting three others players -- Cooper Flagg, Cameron Boozer, and Cayden Boozer -- in the 2025 class. Flagg eventually reclassified and is currently a Duke freshman while the program is still heavily involved in the recruitment of the Boozer twins.

Duke, not including Thomas, still has 12 offers out to prospects in the Class of 2025 but has yet to land a commitment from one of its targets.