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2026 Duke Blue Devils Basketball Predictions and Odds to Win the National Championship

by Ryan Cobbett - 10/25/2026

Duke Blue Devils basketball predictions John Blackwell

The Blue Devils have yet to bring home a National Championship under Jon Scheyer. They continuously bring in top talent, but they have yet to cut the nets after a championship win. Last season, Duke was able to finish the regular season 29-2, winning the ACC Championship, but their season ended in the Elite Eight after a one-point loss to the UConn Huskies. The coaching staff and the returning players have been left with a sour taste in their mouth after squandering a 19-point lead that resulted in their season ending earlier than they thought. The Blue Devils are bringing in an experienced foundation to run it back this season, and they were able to put together a solid transfer class that is coming to fill the shoes of Cameron Boozer and Isaiah Evans. Scheyer has kept Duke on par as a blue blood in the NIL era, but he has yet to elevate the program from contenders to proven champs.

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Duke Blue Devils Summary of Last Season

Including the tournament game that ended their season early, the Duke Blue Devils suffered three losses by a combined five points. Duke put together one of the most successful regular seasons in program history. They finished with a 29-2 record and a 17-1 conference record. Their two regular season losses came at the hands of Texas Tech (82-81) and North Carolina (71-68). While the ACC was a bit weaker than some of the other power conferences, Duke picked up big wins against Texas, #24 Kansas, #22 Arkansas, #15 Florida, #7 Michigan State, #20 Louisville(twice), #24 SMU, #20 Clemson, #1 Michigan, #11 Virginia, and #17 North Carolina during the regular season.  The Blue Devils took an eight-game winning streak into the ACC Tournament, winning the conference tournament with an impressive 3-0 run against Florida State, Clemson, and Virginia. The ACC Champs earned a No. 1 Seed ahead of the tournament. They escaped a first-round upset, taking down Siena 71-65. Duke had a much easier time with the No. 9 Seed TCU Horned Frogs in the second round, beating them by 13. In the Sweet 16 they defeated St. John’s before their season ended in the Elite Eight after a 73-72 loss to the UConn Huskies.

The Blue Devils averaged 81.6 PPG which ranked fourth in the ACC. They had one of the best FG% differentials in the country, shooting nearly 10% better than their opponents on the season. The Blue Devils had one of the best rebounding differentials as well, averaging nearly 11 more rebounds than their opponents per game. They shot 49.1% from the floor and 34.7% from deep. The strength of this team was their defense. They allowed just 63.6 PPG which was the fourth lowest mark in the country and second lowest mark amongst power teams. They held opponents to just 39.3% shooting and they allowed just 9.4 offensive RPG. Cameron Boozer led the team in scoring, averaging 22.5 PPG. He shot 55.6% from the floor and nearly 40% from deep. He also led the team with 10.2 RPG and 4.1 APG. Isaiah Evans was a solid compliment to Boozer as he averaged 15 PPG, and he shot 86% from the free throw line. Patrick Ngongba II averaged 10.1 PPG while recording 5.8 RPG and shooting 60.6% from the floor.

2026 Duke Blue Devils Key Additions/Losses

Boozer was drafted third overall by the Memphis Grizzlies in the NBA Draft, Evans was later drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the second round. While those are two huge holes left in the Duke roster with those two departures, the rest of the team largely remains intact. The only other two subtractions from last year’s team are small forwards Nikolas Khamenia (UConn) and Darren Harris (Indiana). Khamenia averaged 5.7 PPG in 19.8 MPG while Harris averaged 3.3 PPG in 9.7 MPG.

The Blue Devils did bring in three transfers during the offseason, and they signed the best high school class in the country. Their biggest addition is John Blackwell who comes over from Wisconsin. Blackwell averaged 19.1 PPG, while shooting nearly 40% from deep, and adding 5.1 RPG. The Blue Devils also brought in fellow guard Jacob Theodosiou from Loyola-Maryland where he averaged 13.1 PPG and averaged 1.6 SPG. The Blue Devils final transfer addition is Drew Scharnowski who is coming in from Belmont after averaging 10.7 PPG and six RPG. Duke also signed three five-star recruits in Cameron Williams, Deron Rippey Jr, and Joaquim Boumtje Boutmje. They also brought in four-stars Bryson Howard and Maxime Meyer.

2026 Duke Blue Devils Schedule Breakdown

Home- #14 Miami, #9 Virginia

Away- #1 Florida, #3 Illinois, #9 Virginia, #11 Louisville

Neutral- #6 Michigan State, #4 UConn, #19 Texas Tech, #15 Gonzaga

2026 Duke Blue Devils X-Factors/Big Questions

Is John Blackwell the Next Duke Star?

Boozer was much more than a scorer, he also created opportunities for others. Blackwell is a dependable scorer and is already accustomed to tough opponents. The Blue Devils have a strong front court with Boumtje and Ngongba, so adding some perimeter scoring will really open up this offense for Duke. Blackwell needs to transition smoothly in order for Duke to reach their full potential this season.

Can the freshmen make an impact?

Boumtje was selected as the ACC Preseason Rookie of the Year for this upcoming campaign. The 7’2” Spainard will provide tremendous size and should have no problem dominating the paint. Williams is another elite prospect who adds some scoring potential here. If Blackwell can pan out, the Blue Devils may not miss Boozer and Evans that much.

2026 Duke Blue Devils Notable Odds:

National Championship: +550

ACC Champion: -136

AP Top 25: 2nd 

Andy Katz’s Power 44: 2nd 

Wooden Winner- John Blackwell: +3000

2026 Duke Blue Devils Predictions:

Duke may be the only team that has a tough enough frontcourt to deal with Florida’s. However, if Blackwell, Caleb Foster, and those other newcomers can expand the floor for the Blue Devils offense, they may be the most talented team in the country. While they have a much easier path than someone in the B10 and SEC, Duke has one of the toughest schedules in the nation this year, so these guys will be tested. They should dominate the ACC thanks to down years from pretty much everyone else but Virginia, and they’re currently the odds-on favorite to win it all. They have the talent to do so, and if you believe they will take the +550 before that value goes away.

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