With the Duke Blue Devils losing some talent this offseason, Jon Scheyer and his staff have worked hard in terms of the 2026 recruiting class and the transfer portal.

The biggest addition they made in the portal came when former Wisconsin guard John Blackwell committed to the program. He was one of the top players overall in this portal class, picking Duke to further his basketball career.

The addition of Blackwell gives Duke a legit guard to help with the offense. He's a really good player who should come in and contribute right away. But before he heads to Duke, Blackwell is getting feedback from NBA teams.

And there's a slim chance he could stay in the draft

Duke knew that Blackwell would be testing the NBA Draft waters. That's the choice that he made and it's the right one. At the very least, he could go to Duke and pick up valuable feedback on what he needs to work on in terms of his game. 

However, there is that slim chance he stays in the draft as he goes through this process. 

With the NBA Draft Combine taking place in Chicago, Blackwell caught up with Andy Katz to discuss his time in the combine and the upcoming decision. 

"It's up in the air right now. Just trusting God through the process," Blackwell said. "I would love to play for a prestigious college like Duke. Chasing my dreams right now and just weighing what's best for me. Coach Scheyer has been helpful through the process, and the whole coaching staff at Duke has been helpful through the process. In my opinion, it's a win-win situation with both. Because I get to play at the best college in the country or get to live out my dreams and play in the NBA."

Blackwell has a few more weeks to withdraw from the NBA draft process and enroll at Duke. His decision will certainly be monitored a lot moving forward.

He could be the difference in Duke being the best team in the country or falling back just a little.