Ali Akbar Rosady
Succeeding a coaching legend like Mike Krzyzewski at Duke was widely considered one of the most daunting tasks in college basketball. Yet, Jon Scheyer, now in his third season at the helm, has not merely maintained the program’s elite status but has also reaffirmed a distinct roster philosophy rooted in high-level freshman talent. This approach, while a hallmark of Duke’s recent history under Krzyzewski, particularly in his final decade which saw 24 one-and-done prospects including NBA stars like Jayson Tatum, Zion Williamson, and Paolo Banchero, now stands in stark contrast to the evolving landscape of NCAA basketball.
Scheyer has consistently kept Duke at the apex of recruiting rankings, securing top classes in three of his four years since taking over. A season after guiding a freshmen-fueled roster, anchored by eventual NBA No. 1 draft pick Cooper Flagg, to a deep run in the NCAA tournament, Scheyer is once again deploying a similar strategy: pursuing a national championship with a core led by highly touted newcomers. This commitment to youth, however, challenges the prevailing trend in the sport, where teams are increasingly leaning on older, more experienced rosters, largely due to the pervasive influence of the transfer portal and the growing influx of overseas professionals into collegiate play.
The shift towards older rosters is statistically evident across championship-caliber teams. While Kentucky’s 2012 title-winning squad notably started three freshmen and averaged a mere 1.18 years of Division I experience, according to KenPom, recent champions demonstrate a different profile. UConn’s back-to-back championship teams in 2023 and 2024, for instance, averaged 2.25 and 2.43 years of experience, respectively. The starting lineups of last year’s Final Four teams collectively featured 11 seniors and only three freshmen—all from Duke. Even Florida’s recent title-winning roster boasted three senior starters and four transfers, averaging 2.44 years of experience. These metrics highlight a clear divergence from the "one-and-done" era that Duke helped popularize.
Despite not capturing the national title with Flagg, Scheyer’s inaugural season undeniably demonstrated that a youth-centric, uber-talented team can still compete at the sport’s highest level. The performance served as a validation of this model, a formula he is now banking on to propel the Blue Devils back to Indianapolis. For the current season, the focus shifts to projected draft lottery pick Cameron Boozer, supported by Italian wing Dame Sarr, and reserves Cayden Boozer and Nikolas Khamenia.
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"In a perfect world, do I think that we would like to have a little bit more experience? Of course I would," Scheyer stated. "It was the best formula for this year. It doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the best formula going forward. For this year, it just made the most sense to do it this way. And I think we’ve proven that you can win this way." This statement underscores a pragmatic adaptation rather than a rigid adherence, recognizing the unique talent available in each recruiting cycle.
The strategic construction of Duke’s roster has evolved slightly from Scheyer’s first season. In the spring of 2024, the primary objective was to build around Cooper Flagg, focusing on acquiring role players rather than additional primary scorers. This led to the recruitment of three impact veterans via the transfer portal: Mason Gillis from Purdue, Maliq Brown from Syracuse, and Sion James from Tulane. These older, physical players were brought in with the understanding that they would be secondary options, providing a seasoned foundation for the highly-touted freshman class.
This season’s approach, while still featuring the nation’s No. 1 recruiting class—including the Boozer twins, Khamenia, Sebastian Wilkins, and Sarr, who brings professional experience from FC Barcelona since 2023—differs in its source of supplementary experience. Instead of relying heavily on new transfer portal acquisitions, Duke benefits from the luxury of five returning players, a significant number in today’s transient college basketball environment. This internal retention is particularly crucial given that there’s no guarantee this year’s freshman class will replicate the immediate, high-level impact of last season’s, which saw Flagg as a projected No. 1 pick and fellow freshmen Kon Knueppel and Khaman Maluach also selected in the top 10 of their respective drafts.
"I think that’s huge," Scheyer remarked regarding the returning players. "You have a deeper relationship because you’ve been through some s— together already. You’ve gone through some adversity. They have an understanding for terminology and system, what we value as a coaching staff." Junior guard Caleb Foster echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the collective effort required to integrate the new talent. "Every year you [have] got to show the young freshmen what it is to be a Duke basketball player and what it is to just be a college basketball player in general," Foster explained. "I think that this year it is easier because we have five, six guys returning. We can all be a collective effort to help the young guys through struggles … to know what to expect and get ready, prepare for the environments we’re going to be in."
The recruitment of Dame Sarr exemplifies the dynamic nature of roster building in modern college basketball. Duke had initially secured a commitment from Washington State transfer Cedric Coward, a highly-rated wing. However, Coward’s strong performance in NBA draft workouts and at the combine indicated a likely professional leap. Duke pivoted, engaging with Sarr, an international prospect who had also drawn interest from Kansas, Illinois, and Oregon. Sarr committed to the Blue Devils shortly before Coward officially declared for the NBA draft, highlighting Scheyer’s transparent and adaptable recruitment strategy. "We knew getting in with [Coward] that there was a chance he was going to go pro. He was very transparent about it. We were transparent, we weren’t going to wait the whole time either," Scheyer confirmed. "In the meantime, we were transparent with Dame and his representation. And so we knew we had to have one of those guys for this year’s team."
Inevitably, comparisons will be drawn between Cameron Boozer and Cooper Flagg, particularly given their status as generational talents. Boozer arrives at Duke as one of the most decorated high school players in recent memory, boasting four state championships, three consecutive Peach Jam titles on the Nike grassroots circuit, and two gold medals with USA Basketball. Scheyer acknowledges the pressure but emphasizes Boozer’s unique impact. "He’s going to go through some stuff he’s never gone through before, with the noise, with expectations, with comparisons," Scheyer commented. "You can either fight [it], or you embrace [it], and then you control what you can with how you play and what you put your energy towards. He’s so gifted, man. It looks different than Cooper, but it’s just as impactful. The way that he can impact winning with his passing, scoring, rebounding. It’s as good as we’ve had, genuinely."
Boozer has wasted no time in showcasing his potential. In Duke’s exhibition games, he delivered 33 points, 12 rebounds, and 4 assists against UCF, followed by 24 points, 23 rebounds, and 6 assists against Tennessee. His regular-season debut was equally impactful, with 15 points (all in the second half) and 12 rebounds in a season-opening victory over Texas. He then averaged 20.0 points in dominant wins against Western Carolina and Army, before an extraordinary performance against Indiana State, tallying 35 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 blocks, and 3 steals. According to ESPN Research, Boozer became the first major conference freshman since Carmelo Anthony in 2003 to record at least 30 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists, and 1 turnover or fewer in a single game. Jai Lucas, Miami’s head coach and a former associate coach under Scheyer, attributes Boozer’s early success to an intrinsic drive. "He is wired about winning," Lucas told ESPN. "He’s wired about getting better. He’s wired just differently in that sense. And I think that’s going to be what separates him. He has the skill, he’s got the talent, but his mentality’s going to be the thing."
Duke’s ultimate success this season will largely hinge on Boozer’s continued performance and, critically, the team’s defensive prowess. The perception that freshman-heavy groups require time to adapt defensively is common, yet last season’s Blue Devils defied this, emerging as a dominant force on that end of the court. They led the nation in effective field goal percentage defense and ranked within the top five for 2-point defense and adjusted defensive efficiency, largely credited to Khaman Maluach’s elite rim protection, Flagg’s comprehensive court coverage, and the collective physicality and toughness provided by Kon Knueppel and Sion James.
Early indicators for the current season’s defensive unit are promising. Through four games, Duke ranks No. 14 nationally in scoring defense, allowing only 58.8 points per game. The team has demonstrated similar interior defensive capabilities to a year ago, ranking No. 2 in effective field goal percentage defense, No. 8 in 2-point defense, and No. 24 in block percentage. Maliq Brown, a key defensive presence, emphasized the collective commitment: "We all have the same goal right now of trying to make sure we’re that Duke team that’s going to still be some dogs who [are] going to get the win. Everybody’s just trying to play their role and find their role."
While transfers often find the transition to college basketball’s physicality smoother due to prior collegiate or professional experience, Scheyer remains optimistic about his current group of newcomers. Last season’s transfer class, including Brown (two seasons at Syracuse), Gillis (63 starts in 132 games at Purdue), and James (107 starts in four seasons at Tulane), arrived with a clear understanding of the toughness required in the ACC. However, Scheyer believes this year’s freshmen are physically prepared. "All five of them, physically, are ready," Scheyer asserted. "And the hardest adjustment for freshmen is understanding that, even though they’re physically ready, they don’t know how to play physically yet. For us, it’s been about speeding up that process. It hasn’t been about, like, let’s catch them up to last year’s group. The reality is, it doesn’t even matter if we’re as good as last year’s group. We have to just be better than the team we’re playing this year and max out who we are."
Scheyer has intentionally increased the degree of difficulty for his team this season. In contrast to last year, when Flagg, Knueppel, and Maluach eased into their college careers with exhibitions against Division II Lincoln and Arizona State, followed by home openers against Maine and Army, this year’s group faces an immediate baptism by fire. The preseason included a nationally televised road exhibition against Tennessee. The regular season commenced with a challenging matchup in Charlotte against Sean Miller’s Texas Longhorns. While contests against Western Carolina, Army, and Indiana State offered a temporary reprieve, the schedule quickly escalates with Tuesday night’s Champions Classic game against Kansas (9 p.m. ET, ESPN). This pivotal contest initiates a demanding month-long stretch featuring additional top-25 matchups against Arkansas, Florida, Michigan State, and Texas Tech, all preceding the start of play in a significantly improved ACC conference.
"For a young group, there’s going to be some rocky waters," Scheyer acknowledged before the season. "But as long as it makes us better at the end and we win enough games where we put ourselves in a position to be there, I’ll have no regrets. I would be the first to say we did not set our schedule up to go undefeated. … But I can tell you we’re going to learn a lot more in those games than we would if we weren’t playing them."
Despite the inherent challenges of youth and a formidable schedule, expectations for this Duke team are elevated, particularly given Cameron Boozer’s electrifying start. Scheyer’s roster construction reflects a deliberate effort to achieve balance, yet the historical success of Duke’s reliance on elite talent, dating back to his predecessor, remains a guiding principle. This season, the Blue Devils possess that talent in abundance. "I’ve seen great hunger, which is what gives me great confidence for this team," Scheyer concluded. "So do I wish we had a little bit more experience? Yeah, of course. But at the end of the day, you want the best combination of skill sets complementing one another. But then also, you need really good talent that fits how we’re going to play. Which I believe we have." The unfolding season will determine if this renewed commitment to a freshman-led core can deliver Duke its next national championship.
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