Duke Prospects Lead NBA, NFL Draft Conversation

The NBA season opened with late-night thrills and attention on top rookies, including Cooper Flagg and Dylan Harper, as freshmen were expected to inject scoring and defense across the league. Jazz rookie Ace Bailey and lottery picks Kon Knueppel and Egor Demin have drawn early-season attention for their potential impact. Duke again featured prominently in newcomer rankings: ESPN’s Top 50 Impact Newcomers lists Cameron Boozer among the elite freshmen alongside Nikolas Khamenia and Dame Sarr, and Game Theory mock drafts project Boozer as a top‑3 2026 prospect (No. 3), Dame Sarr at No. 12 and Khamenia later in the first round. Those projections underscore Duke’s continued reputation as a pipeline for one‑and‑done, first‑round talent. On the football side, CBS analyst Blake Brockermeyer singled out Duke players — notably edge rusher Vincent Anthony Jr., quarterback Darian Mensah (a 2026 dark‑horse prospect) and cornerback Chandler Rivers — for their NFL traits and draft potential.