The Duke basketball program is entering the 2025-26 season with a completely revamped roster, having lost its entire starting five from last season to the 2025 NBA Draft. However, a few key returners are coming back, and one underclassman who needs to take a major leap for the Blue Devils to be national title contenders is rising sophomore Isaiah Evans.
The former five-star recruit proved to be one of the best outside shooters in the ACC as a rookie, knocking down 41.6% of his threes on 4.1 attempts a game. Evans would've ranked second in the ACC in three-point shooting percentage, but didn't take enough shots to qualify, ending his rookie season with 149 attempts.
Evans didn't see much playing time early on through his freshman season, which came as a surprise to a lot of fans given that he was a former five-star recruit. Then, the 6'6 wing put himself on the map in Duke's marquee matchup at home against then-No. 2 Auburn, going for 18 points on 6-of-8 shooting from three in 16 minutes.
From there, Evans became a consistent part of the rotation, but his role was limited. He was strictly a 3-and-D guy, with 81% of his shot attempts and 78% of his makes as a freshman coming from beyond the perimeter.
Evans began to generate some buzz towards both the 2025 NBA Draft and transfer portal, but eventually elected to return to Duke, instantly becoming a critical piece of next season's rotation.
However, Evans will be thrust into a starting role as a sophomore, and he'll need to take a major leap for Duke to have any championship aspirations.
Evans is a solid perimeter defender, thanks to his length. However, weighing just 175 pounds last season, his versatility was somewhat limited. Beyond that, he averaged less than an assist a game and never had the chance to diversify his offensive arsenal in his role.
With so much of Duke's rotation next season being incoming freshmen, Evans will have to take on lots of the offensive load. Just being a pure shooter won't be enough with the minutes he'll get, although he might be the best Blue Devil next season in that category.
Evans' defensive skills have to improve a ton, and he'll need to be a more willing passer with all of the talent surrounding him on the floor. Like most of the 2025-26 Duke squad, Evans has the potential to be a great player for a championship-caliber team, but hasn't exactly had the chance to show how well-rounded his game can be.
With a much more elevated role coming for Evans in his second year in Durham, the rising sophomore will have to take major strides on both sides of the floor for Duke to be one of the best teams in the nation.