It has been a terrific offseason for Jon Scheyer and Duke.
While the Blue Devils lost Cameron Boozer and Isaiah Evans to the draft, retaining both Patrick Ngongba and Dame Sarr, who considered the draft in their own right, was a huge roster retention win for Scheyer.
And while the Blue Devils saw Nikolas Khamenia and Darren Harris enter the Transfer Portal, they added Wisconsin's John Blackwell, Belmont's Drew Scharnowski, and, most recently, Loyola's Jacob Theodosiou.
While some programs are still looking for starters and rotation-level players in the portal, Scheyer is facing a much different problem: how on earth do you trim down a rotation with as many as 12 or 13 capable rotational pieces?
It won't be easy, and competition in Duke practices will be fierce.
Duke's projected rotation is deep, versatile, and talented
Likely starters:
G John Blackwell
F Dame Sarr
C Patrick Ngongba
When figuring out the starting lineup, three spots are almost certainly spoken for prior to the beginning of practice. Wisconsin transfer John Blackwell is a safe bet to be Duke's leading scorer. He averaged over 19 points per game for the Badgers a season ago while shooting 39% from three. He's a bucket, and he'll provide a nice scoring punch to the Duke backcourt.
Patrick Ngongba is one of the most important players in the country, and his return significantly raised both the floor and the ceiling for the Blue Devils. He's one of the top returning centers in college basketball.
Dame Sarr has the potential to be one of the best 3-and-D wings in the country. He's an elite perimeter defender, and if he can improve his three-point shooting (32.3%) as a sophomore, he's got NBA lottery potential.
Potential starters:
G Caleb Foster
G Cayden Boozer
F Cameron Williams
F/C Drew Scharnowski
Regardless of which two from the above earn starting spots, all four are going to see significant playing time.
Duke's starting point guard next season will either be Caleb Foster or Cayden Boozer. Foster is the captain, and his steadying, veteran presence will be a huge boost for the 2026-27 Blue Devils. But Boozer began to realize his 5-star potential down the stretch of the season when he started in place of the injured Foster.
With Foster's ability to play off-ball thanks to his excellent shooting ability, I lean toward Boozer starting next to Blackwell and Foster leading the second unit with freshman Deron Rippey Jr. You can't really go wrong with either.
5-star freshman Cameron Williams will likely be the starting four, but he'll have to earn it. Belmont transfer Drew Scharnowski is a bundle of energy who is going to do the little things that Duke needs to win games. Both figure to be major rotational pieces regardless.
Fighting for spots in the rotation:
G Deron Rippey Jr.
G/F Bryson Howard
F Sebastian Wilkins
F/C Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje
Before we even get to this quartet, Duke has seven rotational spots effectively assured. All four of these players are good enough to play, but an 11-man rotation seems unlikely. It speaks to the depth that Scheyer has built for next season, though. It might be his deepest team yet; he could legitimately make complete line changes with five-for-five subs and not miss much of a beat.
Rippey seems to be the safest bet to earn a role. He's an explosively athletic point guard with a quick first step. He'll be difficult to keep off the floor.
There's probably only minutes available for one of Bryson Howard or Sebastian Wilkins. Howard, the son of former NBAer Josh Howard, is the forgotten 5-star in Duke's elite recruiting class. Wilkins has a leg up from spending a year with the team while redshirting, but it'll be a battle between the two for a rotational spot.
Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje is the ultimate wildcard. He turns 17 later this month and reclassified from the 2027 class to join the Blue Devils a year early. He's incredibly skilled, and the future is bright, but how quickly he'll be able to get on the court remains to be seen. There figures to be a small role for him early, and by the time the calendar flips to 2027, Boumtje Boumtje could be a significant part of the rotation.
Bench Depth:
G Jacob Theodosiou
C Maxime Meyer
C Ifeanyi Ufochukwu
It's hard to see any of these three carving out legitimate roles with what's in front of them.
Theodosiou committed to Duke recently after spending two seasons at Loyola, where he averaged 13 points per game in both seasons. He's a veteran presence in the locker room and on the practice court who could play some minutes if necessary.
Ufochukwu isn't a confirmed returnee, but with his season-ending knee injury knocking him out after just five games, he's a strong candidate for a medical redshirt. He and 4-star freshman center Maxime Meyer provide quality big man depth for Scheyer.
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