Duke Lands Blackwell, Boosts Title Hopes

0:00On April 21, Duke just snagged a major win in the transfer portal by landing John Blackwell from Wisconsin. The six-foot-four-gar committed to the Blue Devils on Wednesday, passing up schools like Louisville and Illinois. After three solid seasons with the Badgers, where they racked up 51 wins and two NCAA tournament runs, Blackwell's now primed to lead Duke's. Back court, Blackwell started as a three-star recruit outside the top 200, but he blew up quick. As a junior, he dropped 19.1 points per game on 59.3% true shooting. Dude's a versatile score with a 40% clip from deep on 241 attempts and elite mid-range game all while keeping turnovers. Low on high usage. Duke fans are buzzing because this fills a huge gap after losing superstar freshmen like Cooper Flag and Cameron Booser. No more automatic best player on the floor guy next year, so these portal moves hit different. Blackwell joins returners like Patrick and Gongbaugh and Caden Booser, plus new big Drew Sharnowski from Belmont.

1:04The projected lineup looks deep already, with guards like Booser and Blackwell up top, wings like Cameron Williams, and in Gongbaugh in the middle. Bench pieces include Foster and Tsar if they stick around. But they're not done eyes on big names like Alan Graves from Santa Clara, who's testing NBA waters but could portal back. Coach John Shire's building smart after Final 4 and elite 8 exits, stacking talent for a title push. Blackwell's the spark they needed, setting Duke up strong for 2026-27.