Duke Blue Devils men's basketball

The Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team represents Duke University in NCAA Division I college basketball and competes in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The team is fourth all-time in wins of any NCAA men's basketball program, and is currently coached by Jon Scheyer.
Duke has won five national championships, and appeared in 11 national championship games and 18 Final Fours. Duke has an NCAA-best.755 NCAA tournament winning percentage. Eleven Duke players have been named the National Player of the Year, and 72 players have been selected in the NBA draft, six of which were selected first overall. Additionally, Duke has had 36 players named All-Americans and 14 players named Academic All-Americans. Duke has been the Atlantic Coast Conference Champions a record 23 times, and also lays claim to 21 ACC regular season titles. Prior to joining the ACC, Duke won the Southern Conference championships five times. Duke has also finished the season ranked No. 1 in the AP poll eight times and is the all-time leader in total weeks ranked as the number one team in the nation by the AP with 145 weeks. Additionally, the Blue Devils have the third longest streak in the AP Top 25 in history with 200 consecutive appearances from 1996 to 2007, trailing only Kansas' 231 consecutive polls from 2009 to 2021, and UCLA's 221 consecutive polls from 1966 to 1980.

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Team history

Early years (1906–1953)

In 1906, Wilbur Wade Card, Trinity College's Athletic Director and a member of the Class of 1900, introduced the game of basketball to Trinity. The January 30 issue of The Trinity Chronicle headlined the new sport on its front page. Trinity's first game ended in a loss to Wake Forest, 24–10. The game was played in the Angier B. Duke Gymnasium, later known as The Ark. The Trinity team won its first title in 1920, the state championship, by beating the North Carolina State College of Agriculture and Engineering 25 to 24. Earlier in the season they had beaten the University of North Carolina 19–18 in the first match-up between the two schools. Trinity college then became Duke University.
Billy Werber, Class of 1930, became Duke's first All-American in basketball. The Gothic-style West Campus opened that year, with a new gym, later to be named for Coach Card. The Indoor Stadium opened in 1940. Initially it was referred to as an "Addition" to the gymnasium. Part of its cost was paid for with the proceeds from the Duke football team's appearance in the 1938 Rose Bowl. In 1972 it would be named for Eddie Cameron, head coach from 1929 to 1942.
In 1952, Dick Groat became the first Duke player to be named National Player of the Year. Duke left the Southern Conference to become a charter member of the Atlantic Coast Conference in 1953. The Duke team under Vic Bubas made its first appearance in the Final Four in 1963, losing 94–75 to Loyola Chicago in the semifinal. The next year, Bubas' team reached the [1964 National Collegiate Athletic Association|NCAA University Division basketball championship game|national title game], losing to the [1963–64 2000–01 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|UCLA Bruins men's basketball team|Bruins of UCLA], which claimed the first of that program's 10 titles in the next 12 years. Bob Verga was Duke's star player in 1967.

Bill Foster (1974–1980)

The basketball program won its 1000th game in 1974, making Duke only the eighth school in NCAA history to reach that figure. In a turnaround, Coach Bill Foster's 1978 Blue Devils, who had gone 2–10 in the ACC the previous year, won the conference tournament and went on to the NCAA championship game, where they fell to [1977–78 1979–80 Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team|Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball team|Kentucky]. Gene Banks, Mike Gminski and Jim Spanarkel ran the floor.

Mike Krzyzewski (1980–2022)

Mike Krzyzewski was at Duke from 1980 to 2022.
Krzyzewski's teams made the Final Four in 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2010, 2015 and 2022.
In Krzyzewski's first season, the Blue Devils would finish the season with a 17–13 overall record and 6–8 record in ACC play. The team would later play in the NIT tournament advancing to the quarterfinals. Despite having a good record the previous season, the Blue Devils would struggle during the next two seasons finishing with 10 wins in 1982 and 11 wins in 1983. The 1984 team, led by Tommy Amaker & Johnny Dawkins, would bounce back in strong fashion finishing 24–10 and was ranked the No.14 in the AP and Coaches poll, but lost in the second round of the NCAA tournament to the Washington Huskies.
In 1985 Duke defeated Pepperdine in the first round of the NCAA tournament, for Krzyzewski's first tournament win, but lost to Boston College in the second round 74–73. The next season the Blue Devils made their first Final Four under Krzyzewski. They beat Kansas to advance to the title game against Louisville, where they ultimately lost 72–69.
Duke upset the heavily favored [1990–91 1989–90 UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball team|UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball team|UNLV Runnin' Rebels] 79–77 in the Final Four in 1991, a rematch of the 1990 final in which Duke lost by 30 points. The team, led by Christian Laettner, Bobby Hurley, Grant Hill, and Thomas Hill, went on to defeat Kansas 72–65 to win the university's first NCAA Championship. Ranked #1 all season and favored to repeat as national champions in 1992, Duke took part in a game "acclaimed by many the greatest college basketball game ever played," according to ESPN. In the Elite Eight, Duke met the Rick Pitino-led Kentucky Wildcats. It appeared Kentucky had sealed the win in overtime when guard Sean Woods hit a running shot off the glass in the lane to put Kentucky up by one with 2.1 seconds left on the clock. After a timeout, Duke's Grant Hill threw a full-court pass to Christian Laettner. Laettner took one dribble and nailed a turn-around jumper at the buzzer to send Duke into the Final Four with a 104–103 victory (The Shot). Duke went on to defeat sixth-seeded Michigan, led by the Fab Five as freshmen starters including Chris Webber, Jalen Rose and Juwan Howard, 71–51 to repeat as national champions. Following the successful repeat, Laettner was the only collegiate player to be chosen for the Dream Team that won Olympic gold in Barcelona, while Krzyzewski was an assistant coach under Chuck Daly of the Detroit Pistons in a precursor to his becoming Team USA coach in 2006 and coaching them to two gold medals.
They would later meet Kentucky for another classic regional final game, but blow a 17-point second half lead in losing to the Wildcats. The Blue Devils would lose the 1994 title game to Arkansas and their "Forty Minutes of Hell" defense. The next two seasons would see them fall to just 31–31, though they made the 1996 tournament with an 18–12 record, 8–8 in conference play. They would also fall in the 1999 title game, this time to Jim Calhoun and the UConn Huskies. Duke defeated Arizona 82–72 to win its third NCAA Championship in 2001, becoming one of a handful of teams in NCAA Tournament history to defeat all of their tournament opponents by double digits. Krzyzewski was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame later that year. On April 5, 2010, Duke Men's Basketball won their fourth NCAA Championship by defeating Butler 61–59. On April 6, 2015, Duke's Men's Basketball won their fifth NCAA Championship by defeating Wisconsin 68–63.
Coach K announced that the 2021–22 season would be his last coaching for Duke. Making it to the Final Four one last time, Duke fell just short of the championship game losing to the North Carolina Tar Heels 81–77 in the first ever meeting between the rivals in the NCAA Tournament.

Jon Scheyer (2022–present)

On June 2, 2021, Scheyer was named as the next head coach at Duke following Krzyzewski's retirement at the end of the 2021-22 season. On March 11, 2023, he became the first person to win an ACC tournament title as both a coach and a player.
Former Duke stars such as Jim Spanarkel, Gene Banks, Alaa Abdelnaby, Johnny Dawkins, Cherokee Parks, Bobby Hurley, Antonio Lang, Roshown McLeod, William Avery, Trajan Langdon, Grant Hill, Danny Ferry, Christian Laettner, Kenny Dennard, Brian Davis, Elton Brand, Shane Battier, Carlos Boozer, Chris Duhon, Mike Dunleavy Jr., Dahntay Jones, Daniel Ewing, JJ Redick, Shavlik Randolph, Shelden Williams, Corey Maggette, Luol Deng, Josh McRoberts, Gerald Henderson, Andre Dawkins, Austin Rivers, Lance Thomas, Kyle Singler, Miles Plumlee, Mason Plumlee, Marshall Plumlee, Bob Verga, Quinn Cook, Nolan Smith, Jason Williams, Jabari Parker, Rodney Hood, Seth Curry, Kyrie Irving, Matt Jones, Amile Jefferson, Jahlil Okafor, Tyus Jones, Justise Winslow, Grayson Allen, Brandon Ingram, Luke Kennard, Jayson Tatum, Harry Giles, Frank Jackson, Gary Trent Jr., Trevon Duval, Marvin Bagley III, Wendell Carter Jr., RJ Barrett, Marques Bolden, Cam Reddish, Zion Williamson, Tre Jones, Vernon Carey Jr., Cassius Stanley, Jalen Johnson, Paolo Banchero, Mark Williams, Wendell Moore Jr., Trevor Keels, AJ Griffin and Dereck Lively II have gone on to play in the NBA.
Many of Krzyzewski's assistants and former players, such as Tommy Amaker, Bob Bender, Chuck Swenson at William & Mary, Mike Brey, Jeff Capel, Chris Collins, Johnny Dawkins, Quin Snyder, Steve Wojciechowski, and JJ Redick have become head basketball coaches at major universities and the NBA, while Pete Gaudet is now the head coach of the India women's national basketball team.

Team captains

NCAA tournament seeding history

''The NCAA began seeding the tournament with the 1978 edition.''

Complete NCAA tournament results

The Blue Devils have appeared in the NCAA tournament 47 times. Their combined record is 130–42.

1955		First Round		L 73–74
1960		First Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight	Princeton NYU	W 84–60 W 58–56 L 59–74
1963		Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National 3rd Place Game	Loyola–Chicago Oregon State	W 81–76 W 73–59 L 75–94 W 85–63
1964		Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship	Connecticut [1963–64 1991–92 Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team\|Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team\|Michigan] UCLA	W 87–73 W 101–54 W 91–80 L 83–98
1966		Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National 3rd Place Game	Kentucky [1965–66 1965–66 Utah Utes men's basketball team\|Utah Utes men's basketball team\|Utah]	W 76–74 W 91–81 L 79–83 W 79–77
1978		First Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship	Rhode Island Penn Villanova Notre Dame Kentucky	W 63–62 W 84–80 W 90–72 W 90–86 L 88–94
1979	#2	Second Round	#10 St. John's	L 78–80
1980	#4	Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight	#12 Penn 1 Kentucky 6 Purdue	W 52–42W 55–54 L 60–68
1984	#3	Second Round	#6 Washington	L 78–80
1985	#3	First Round Second Round	#14 Pepperdine 11 Boston College	W 75–62L 73–74
1986	#1	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship	#16 Mississippi Valley State 8 Old Dominion 12 DePaul 7 Navy 1 Kansas 2 Louisville	W 85–78W 89–61 W 74–67 W 71–50 W 71–67 L 69–72
1987	#5	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen	#12 Texas A&M 13 Xavier 1 Indiana	W 58–51W 65–50 L 82–88
1988	#2	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four	#15 Boston University 7 SMU 11 Rhode Island 1 [1987–88 1998–99 Temple Owls men's basketball team\|Temple Owls men's basketball team\|Temple] 6 Kansas	W 85–69W 94–79 W 73–72 W 63–53 L 59–66
1989	#2	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four	#15 South Carolina State 7 [1988–89 2009–10 West Virginia Mountaineers men's basketball team\|West Virginia Mountaineers men's basketball team\|West Virginia] 11 Minnesota 1 Georgetown 3 Seton Hall	W 90–69W 70–63 W 87–70 W 85–77 L 78–95
1990	#3	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship	#14 Richmond 6 St. John's 7 UCLA 1 Connecticut 4 Arkansas 1 UNLV	W 81–46W 76–72 W 90–81 W 79–78^OT W 97–83 L 73–103
1991	#2	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship	#15 Northeast Louisiana 7 Iowa 11 Connecticut 4 St. John's 1 UNLV 3 Kansas	W 102–73W 85–70 W 81–67 W 61–78 W 79–77 W 72–65
1992	#1	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship	#16 9 Iowa 4 Seton Hall 2 Kentucky 2 Indiana 6 Michigan	W 82–56W 75–62 W 81–69 W 104–103^OT W 81–78 W 71–51
1993	#3	First Round Second Round	#14 Southern Illinois 6 California	W 105–70L 77–82
1994	#2	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship	#15 Texas Southern 7 Michigan State 6 Marquette 1 Purdue 3 Florida 1 Arkansas	W 82–70W 75–63 W 59–49 W 69–60 W 70–65 L 72–76
1996	#8	First Round	#9 Eastern Michigan	L 60–75
1997	#2	First Round Second Round	#15 Murray State 10	W 71–68L 87–98
1998	#1	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight	#16 Radford 8 Oklahoma State 5 [1997–98 2017–18 Syracuse Orange men's basketball team\|Syracuse Orangemen basketball team\|Syracuse] 2 Kentucky	W 99–63W 79–73 W 80–67 L 84–86
1999	#1	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship	#16 Florida A&M 9 Tulsa 12 SW Missouri State 6 Temple 1 Michigan State 1 Connecticut	W 99–58W 97–56 W 78–61 W 85–64 W 68–62 L 74–77
2000	#1	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen	#16 Lamar 8 Kansas 5 Florida	W 82–55W 69–64 L 78–87
2001	#1	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship	#16 Monmouth 9 Missouri 4 UCLA 6 USC 3 Maryland 2 Arizona	W 95–57W 94–81 W 76–63 W 79–69 W 95–84 W 82–72
2002	#1	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen	#16 Winthrop 8 Notre Dame 5 Indiana	W 84–37W 84–77 L 73–74
2003	#3	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen	#14 Colorado State 11 Central Michigan 2 Kansas	W 67–57W 86–60 L 65–69
2004	#1	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four	#16 8 Seton Hall 5 Illinois 7 Xavier 2 Connecticut	W 96–61W 90–62 W 72–62 W 66–63 L 78–79
2005	#1	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen	#16 Delaware State 9 Mississippi State 5 Michigan State	W 57–46W 63–55 L 68–78
2006	#1	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen	#16 Southern 8 George Washington 4 LSU	W 70–54W 74–61 L 54–62
2007	#6	First Round	#11 VCU	L 77–79
2008	#2	First Round Second Round	#15 Belmont 7 West Virginia	W 71–70L 67–73
2009	#2	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen	#15 Binghamton 7 Texas 3 Villanova	W 86–62W 74–69 L 54–77
2010	#1	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship	#16 8 California 4 Purdue 3 Baylor 2 West Virginia 5 Butler	W 73–44W 68–53 W 70–57 W 78–71 W 78–57 W 61–59
2011	#1	Second Round Third Round Sweet Sixteen	#16 Hampton 8 Michigan 5 Arizona	W 87–45W 73–71 L 77–93
2012	#2	Second Round	#15 Lehigh	L 70–75
2013	#2	Second Round Third Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight	#15 Albany 7 Creighton 3 Michigan State 1 Louisville	W 73–61W 50–66 W 61–71 L 63–85
2014	#3	Second Round	#14 Mercer	L 71–78
2015	#1	Second Round Third Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship	#16 Robert Morris 8 San Diego State 5 Utah 2 [2014–15 2014–15 Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball team\|Gonzaga Bulldogs men's basketball team\|Gonzaga] 7 Michigan State 1 Wisconsin	W 85–56W 68–49 W 63–57 W 66–52 W 81–61 W 68–63
2016	#4	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen	#13 UNC Wilmington 12 Yale 1 Oregon	W 93–85W 71–64 L 68–82
2017	#2	First Round Second Round	#15 Troy 7 South Carolina	W 87–65L 81–88
2018	#2	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight	#15 Iona 7 Rhode Island 11 Syracuse 1 Kansas	W 89–67W 87–62 W 69–65 L 81–85 OT
2019	#1	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight	#16 North Dakota State 9 UCF 4 Virginia Tech 2 Michigan State	W 85–62W 77–76 W 75–73 L 67–68
2022	#2	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four	#15 Cal State Fullerton 7 Michigan State 3 Texas Tech 4 Arkansas 8 [2021–22 1970–71 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team\|North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team\|North Carolina]	W 78–61 W 85–76 W 78–73 W 78–69 L 77–81
2023	#5	First Round Second Round	#12 Oral Roberts 4 Tennessee	W 74–51L 52–65
2024	#4	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight	#13 Vermont 12 James Madison 1 Houston 11 [2023–24 North Carolina State Wolfpack men's basketball\|NC State Wolfpack men's basketball team\|NC State]	W 64–47 W 93–55 W 54–51 L 64–76
2025	#1	First Round Second Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four	#16 Mount St. Mary's 9 Baylor 4 Arizona 2 Alabama 1 Houston	W 93–49 W 89–66 W 100–93 W 85–65 L 67–70

NIT results

The Blue Devils have appeared in the National Invitation Tournament five times. Their combined record is 5–6.

1967	Quarterfinals		L 63–72
1968	First Round Quarterfinals		W 97–81 L 71–100
1970	First Round		L 75–78
1971	First Round Quarterfinals Semifinals 3rd Place Game	North Carolina	W 68–60 W 78–64 L 69–73 L 88–92
1981	First Round Second Round Quarterfinals	Alabama Purdue	W 79–69 W 75–70 L 69–81

Key statistics

As of the 2017–18 season, the Blue Devils' program record is as follows.
Duke has been ranked as the #1 team in the nation 235 weeks in their history.
Duke had not lost a non-conference game at Cameron from 2000 until 2019, when SFASU beat Duke in overtime. Duke maintains a tradition of hosting the previous season's Division II national champion in an exhibition game each November.

Cameron Indoor Stadium & Fanbase

Cameron Indoor Stadium was completed on January 6, 1940, having cost $400,000. At the time, it was the largest gymnasium in the country south of the Palestra at the University of Pennsylvania. Originally called Duke Indoor Stadium, it was renamed for Coach Cameron on January 22, 1972. The building originally included seating for 8,800, though standing room was sufficient to ensure that 12,000 could fit in on a particularly busy day. Then, as now, Duke students were allowed a large chunk of the seats, including those directly alongside the court. Renovations in 1987–1988 removed the standing room areas and added seats, bringing capacity to 9,314.

Cameron Crazies

Duke's men's basketball teams have had a decided home-court advantage for many years, thanks to the diehard students known as the Cameron Crazies. The hardwood floor has been dedicated and renamed Coach K Court in honor of head coach Mike Krzyzewski, and the tent city outside Cameron where students camp out before big games is known as Krzyzewskiville. In 1999, Sports Illustrated ranked Cameron the fourth best venue in all of professional and college sports, and USA Today referred to it as "the toughest road game in the nation".

Criticism

The Duke men's basketball team has been noted as a particularly hated team within the sport. Some of the hate comes from fans of rival teams, most notably the North Carolina Tar Heels. The hate is often tied to Duke's record, as the team has experienced success in most seasons since the late 1980s. North Carolina has an astonishing record against Duke at 160-105
The hate is often tied to specific players. Christian Laettner, who played for Duke from 1988 to 1992 as they won two national championships, is often named as one of the most hated players in college basketball. The 2015 documentary I Hate Christian Laettner names five main reasons for the hate: "privilege, race, bully, greatness and looks".
JJ Redick, who played at Duke from 2002 to 2006 also experienced hatred and animosity from fans during his tenure. Another particularly hated player is Grayson Allen, who played for Duke from 2014 to 2018. In addition to many of the reasons Laettner was hated, Allen was also targeted after several incidents in which he deliberately tripped opposing players.

Player awards

Retired numbers

4	SG	2002–06	2007
10	PG	1949–52	1952
11	PG	1989–93	1993
22	PG	1999–2002	2003
23	PF	2002–06	2007
24	PG	1982–86	1986
25	SF	1960–63	1990
31	SF	1997–2001	2001
32	PF	1988–92	1992
33	SF	1990–94	1994
35	PF	1985–89	1989
43	C	1976–80	1980
44	SG	1961–64	1994

National Players of the Year">Player of the year award">Players of the Year

Dick Groat Helms, UPI
Art Heyman AP, UPI, U.S. Basketball Writers
Johnny Dawkins Naismith
Danny Ferry Naismith, UPI, U.S. Basketball Writers
Christian Laettner AP, Basketball Times, NABC, Naismith, Rupp, U.S. Basketball Writers, Wooden
Elton Brand AP, NABC, Naismith, Rupp, U.S. Basketball Writers, Wooden, Sporting News
Shane Battier AP, Basketball Times, Naismith, Rupp, U.S. Basketball Writers, Wooden, Sporting News
Jay Williams AP, Basketball Times, NABC, Naismith, Rupp, U.S. Basketball Writers, Wooden, Sporting News
JJ Redick AP, Basketball Times, NABC, Naismith, Rupp, U.S. Basketball Writers, Wooden, Sporting News
Marvin Bagley III, NABC
RJ Barrett, Wooden, USA Today
Zion Williamson AP, NABC, Naismith, U.S. Basketball Writers, Wooden, Sporting News
Cooper Flagg ''U.S. Basketball Writers, NABC''

ACC Men's Basketball Player of the Year

ACC [Rookie]s of the Year

National Defensive Player of the Year

ACC Defensive Player of the Year

Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame

McDonald's All-Americans

The following 78 McDonald's All-Americans have signed and played for Duke.

1977 – Gene Banks
1978 – Vince Taylor
1982 – Johnny Dawkins
1983 – Tommy Amaker & Martin Nessley
1985 – Danny Ferry & Quin Snyder
1986 – Alaa Abdelnaby & Phil Henderson
1988 – Christian Laettner & Crawford Palmer
1989 – Bobby Hurley & Billy McCaffrey
1990 – Grant Hill
1991 – Cherokee Parks
1992 – Chris Collins
1993 – Joey Beard
1994 – Trajan Langdon, Ricky Price & Steve Wojciechowski
1995 – Taymon Domzalski
1996 – Nate James
1997 – Elton Brand, Shane Battier & Chris Burgess
1998 – Corey Maggette
1999 – Carlos Boozer, Mike Dunleavy Jr., Casey Sanders & Jay Williams (basketball)
2000 – Chris Duhon
2001 – Daniel Ewing
2002 – Sean Dockery, JJ Redick, Shavlik Randolph & Michael Thompson
2003 – Luol Deng
2004 – DeMarcus Nelson
2005 – Eric Boateng, Greg Paulus & Josh McRoberts
2006 – Gerald Henderson Jr., Jon Scheyer & Lance Thomas
2007 – Taylor King, Kyle Singler & Nolan Smith
2008 – Elliot Williams
2009 – Ryan Kelly & Mason Plumlee
2010 – Kyrie Irving
2011 – Quinn Cook, Marshall Plumlee & Austin Rivers
2012 – Amile Jefferson & Rasheed Sulaimon
2013 – Matt Jones & Jabari Parker
2014 – Grayson Allen, Tyus Jones, Jahlil Okafor & Justise Winslow
2015 – Brandon Ingram, Chase Jeter & Luke Kennard
2016 – Marques Bolden, Frank Jackson & Jayson Tatum
2017 – Wendell Carter Jr., Trevon Duval & Gary Trent Jr.
2018 – RJ Barrett, Tre Jones, Cam Reddish & Zion Williamson
2019 – Vernon Carey Jr., Matthew Hurt & Wendell Moore Jr.
2020 – Jeremy Roach, DJ Steward, Mark Williams
2021 – Paolo Banchero & AJ Griffin
2022 – Dereck Lively II, Mark Mitchell & Dariq Whitehead
2023 – Jared McCain & Sean Stewart
2024 – Isaiah Evans & Cooper Flagg

Current Blue Devils in the NBA & International leagues

As of October 7, 2025, these former Blue Devils players were in the NBA:

Kyrie Irving – Dallas Mavericks
Seth Curry – Charlotte Hornets
Mason Plumlee – Phoenix Suns
Tyus Jones – Phoenix Suns
Brandon Ingram – Toronto Raptors
Luke Kennard – Memphis Grizzlies
Jayson Tatum – Boston Celtics
Grayson Allen – Phoenix Suns
Marvin Bagley III – Memphis Grizzlies
Wendell Carter Jr. – Orlando Magic
Gary Trent Jr. – Milwaukee Bucks
RJ Barrett – Toronto Raptors
Cam Reddish – Free Agent
Zion Williamson – New Orleans Pelicans
Marques Bolden – Free Agent
Tre Jones – Chicago Bulls
Jalen Johnson – Atlanta Hawks
Paolo Banchero – Orlando Magic
Mark Williams – Charlotte Hornets
Wendell Moore Jr. – Charlotte Hornets
Dereck Lively II – Dallas Mavericks
Dariq Whitehead – Brooklyn Nets
Jared McCain – Philadelphia 76ers
Kyle Filipowski – Utah Jazz
Cooper Flagg – Dallas Mavericks
Kon Knueppel – Charlotte Hornets
Khaman Maluach – Phoenix Suns
Tyrese Proctor – Cleveland Cavaliers

Former Blue Devils in International leagues

Joey Baker – Joondalup Wolves
Javin DeLaurier – Promitheas Patras B.C.
Trevon Duval – Manisa Büyükşehir Belediyespor
Harry Giles III - Shanxi Loongs
Jacob Grandison – Vilpas Vikings
Jordan Goldwire – Lobos Plateados de la BUAP
Matthew Hurt – South East Melbourne Phoenix
Frank Jackson – Nanterre 92
Jahlil Okafor – Capitanes de Arecibo
Jabari Parker – FC Barcelona
Alex O'Connell – Alba Berlin
Justin Robinson – Elitzur Netanya B.C.
Jeremy Roach – Wilki Morskie Szczecin
Cassius Stanley – Hapoel Afula B.C.
DJ Steward – Aquila Basket Trento
Rasheed Sulaimon – KK Budućnost
Derryck Thornton – Leicester Riders
Jordan Tucker – Chorale Roanne Basket
Jack White – Melbourne United

Rivalries

The Duke–North Carolina rivalry is often ranked among the top rivalries in both college basketball and all North American sports. Entering the 2023 - 2024 season, North Carolina leads the rivalry, winning 141 games to Duke's 115. The Duke Blue Devils face the North Carolina Tar Heels twice each year during ACC play, with thousands of Duke undergraduate students participating in an annual tradition of camping out in Krzyzewskiville, a lawn in front of Cameron Indoor Stadium, for months to line up for admission into the rivalry game. The two teams always face each other for their last game of the regular season, with the home team hosting their Senior Night. Some years, the two teams meet for a third game in the ACC tournament. The teams have met twice in post-season tournament play. In 2022, the two schools met in the Final Four to face each other in the NCAA Tournament for the first time. In that game, the Tar Heels defeated the Blue Devils 81–77. In 1971 the two rivals met in the semi-finals of the NIT, a game also won by North Carolina by a score of 73 - 69. Duke also has rivalries with NC State and Wake Forest, and together with UNC, the 4 schools form Tobacco Road.
Duke and North Carolina have combined for 11 national championships, with North Carolina leading Duke 6–5. The intensity of the rivalry is augmented by the proximity of the two universities, located only ten miles apart along U.S. Highway 15–501 or eight miles apart in straight-line distance in the cities of Durham and Chapel Hill. In addition, Duke is a private university whereas North Carolina is a public school; the vastly different funding structures and cultures between the two further contribute to the intensity of the rivalry.
Former Esquire editor and author Will Blythe argues that the rivalry's passion can be attributed greatly to class and culture in the South.
The rivalry has been the subject of various books and articles, including To Hate Like This Is to Be Happy Forever by Blythe and Blue Blood by Art Chansky.
Further illustrating the intensity of the rivalry, U.S. Representative Brad Miller, a die-hard Carolina fan, told an Associated Press writer in 2012, "I have said very publicly that if Duke was playing against the Taliban, then I'd have to pull for the Taliban."
However, also due to the close proximity of the two schools, there is respect and collaboration within the rivalry. Inspired by the men's basketball teams, twenty-four students from the two schools got together from January 14–16, 2006 in order to attempt to break the world record for the longest continuous game of basketball ever recorded. The game set a new world record at 57 hours, 17 minutes and 41 seconds with Duke winning the game 3699–3444. All $60,000 raised from the marathon benefited the Hoop Dreams Basketball Academy, an organization which helps children with life-threatening illnesses develop successful life skills through basketball.
Beyond athletics, the school papers have also engaged in the rivalry. As a tradition, one day prior to a Duke-North Carolina basketball game, The Chronicle, Duke's student newspaper, publishes a spoof cover page for the day's edition with the title The Daily Tar Hole. Contained within are satirical stories poking fun at The Daily Tar Heel and the North Carolina Tar Heels. The Daily Tar Heel typically publishes former columnist Ian Williams' "Insider's guide to hating Duke" for the two basketball match-ups each year. There is a longstanding agreement that if Duke wins the first matchup, The Daily Tar Heels masthead is printed in Duke blue, and if North Carolina wins the first matchup, The Chronicles masthead is painted Carolina blue. The losing school's paper also has to put the other school's logo in a conspicuous location and claim that the winning school is "still the best."
The Michigan Wolverines and the Maryland Terrapins basketball teams have also claimed rivalries against the Blue Devils, but Duke has long rejected both claims and considers North Carolina to be its only rival.

By the numbers

All-time wins – 2,271
All-time winning percentage –.712
NCAA championships – 5
NCAA tournament runner-up – 6
All-Americans – 49 players
ACC regular season titles – 23
ACC tournament titles – 23
NCAA championship games – 11
NCAA Final Fours – 18
NCAA tournament appearances – 47
NCAA tournament wins – 121
No. 1 seeds in the NCAA tournament – 14
Number of weeks ranked all-time in the top 25 of the AP Poll – 870
Number of times defeating the No. 1 ranked team in the country – 10

Victories over AP No. 1 team

Duke has 10 victories over the AP number one ranked team.

January 27, 1958 – NR Duke 72, No. 1 West Virginia 68
December 10, 1965 – No. 8 Duke 82, No. 1 UCLA 66
December 11, 1965 – No. 8 Duke 94, No. 1 UCLA 75
March 11, 1984 – No. 16 Duke 77, No. 1 North Carolina 75
March 26, 1988 – No. 5 Duke 63, No. 1 Temple 53
March 30, 1991 – No. 2 Duke 79, No. 1 UNLV 77
December 5, 1992 – No. 4 Duke 79, No. 1 Michigan 68
November 26, 1997 – No. 4 Duke 95, No. 1 Arizona 87
February 22, 2014 – No. 5 Duke 66, No. 1 Syracuse 60
November 26, 2021 – No. 5 Duke 84, No. 1 Gonzaga 81