The transfer portal has claimed another Duke player as Sean Stewart, a highly-ranked freshman from the 2021 Rivals class, announced his intention to leave the Blue Devils. This marks the seventh departure from last year’s roster, with other notable players like TJ Power, Jeremy Roach, and Mark Mitchell also choosing to transfer. With only three players from the Elite Eight team returning next season – junior guard Tyrese Proctor, sophomore guard Caleb Foster, and senior walk-on Stanley Borden – Duke fans are eagerly anticipating the arrival of their incoming freshman class.
Led by the top-ranked recruit in the country, Cooper Flagg, the freshmen class boasts several other five-star recruits as well. Flagg is joined by Kon Kneuppel, Isaiah Evans, and Khaman Maluach, who is projected to be a lottery pick. In addition to these talented newcomers, Duke also has a few four-star recruits to round out their class.
While the Blue Devils have been actively recruiting for this upcoming season, they are also expected to be active in the transfer portal. Head coach Jon Scheyer will be coaching his first season without any players from the Mike Krzyzewski era, making it a crucial year for him as he tries to lead Duke back to success on the court. Despite strong recruiting classes so far in his tenure at Duke, Scheyer has yet to reach the Final Four. However, with such a talented freshman class and an active transfer market on tap for next season, Blue Devil fans are hopeful that this could finally be the year when everything falls into place for a deep tournament run.