The Duke Blue Devils enter the men’s NCAA Tournament among the heaviest national championship favorites thanks to their 31-3 record, and head coach Jon Scheyer can only put together a resume like that with serious NBA talent on his roster.
Freshman sensation Cooper Flagg, the ACC Player of the Year and potential Wooden Award winner, has looked like a lock for the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft since he reclassified from the Class of 2025, but Scheyer didn’t stop there on the recruiting trail. The Blue Devils pulled four five-star freshmen out of the high school ranks, and even four-star center Patrick Ngongba looks like a potential focal point for the 2025-26 squad in his limited work.
All that to say, Duke is going to dominate the NBA draft headlines all summer, and the latest mock draft from The Athletic’s Sam Vecenie (subscription required) included every member of the Blue Devils starting lineup. Here’s a look at where the stars of Durham could be headed.
Cooper Flagg (No. 1 overall, Utah Jazz)
The best freshman (and player) in the country leads the Blue Devils in all five major statistical categories, averaging 18.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.5 steals, and 1.3 blocks. He’s made 36.8% of his triples and finished with a 1.90 assist-to-turnover ratio. The draft lottery is a bidding war for his services, and this destination would pair him with former Blue Devil Kyle Filipowski.
Kon Knueppel (No. 6 overall, Philadelphia 76ers)
The ACC Tournament MVP averaged 21.0 points during the conference tournament, operating as the team’s top option without Flagg on the court. A 39.2% 3-point shooter averaging 14.4 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.7 assists, it’s hard to say what his numbers could have looked like on a team that let him run the floor constantly.
Khaman Maluach (No. 14 overall, Atlanta Hawks)
Maluach was a mainstay in the top 10 alongside Knueppel and Flagg on midseason mock drafts, but Vecenie described him as a polarizing prospect in his writeup.
“Some see Maluach, who has just recently started playing basketball and is still learning the intricacies of the game, as a high-upside swing at center with his length, defensive capabilities and movement skills,” Vecenie wrote. “Others see a big man with questionable hands, a limited skill set that likely will resign him toward being a low-usage big and a lack of real vertical pop that could hinder him in ball-screen actions as a roller.
“Either way, the former Olympian has become a bigger feature of the Duke offense as the season developed. He averages 8.3 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game.
Tyrese Proctor (No. 38 overall, Sacramento Kings)
The only player to spend the last three seasons in Durham, Proctor put together a career campaign. His 12.0 points per game, 43.1% field-goal percentage, and 38.2% 3-point percentage are all personal bests, and he put together five straight games with at least 16 points in February.
Sion James (No. 58 overall, Houston Rockets)
A Tulane transfer who will only spend one year with the Blue Devils, James has been a wonderful utility player for Scheyer. At one point early in the conference schedule, he grabbed 11 rebounds against Virginia Tech and dished eight assists in the next game against SMU, a great example of his adaptability. He averages 8.7 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 3.1 assists.
