The Devil's Den: A Duke Athletics Podcast

Josh, Dustin, and Raul begin the episode with a little post-championship Knicks talk before taking a close look at Duke's stacked, versatile frontcourt for the 2026-27 season. Topics include:Patrick Ngongba as the most important player on next year's teamHow many minutes Ngongba can realistically be expected to playThe need for Ngongba to get more shot attemptsDrew Scharnowski playing the "Maliq Brown role" off the benchThe importance of the vertical gravity Scharnowski can provideWhether Cam Williams should be expected to startWhy Williams might actually be underratedJoaquim Boumtje-Boumtje's movement shootingThe battle for minutes between Boumtje-Boumtje and WilliamsThe incredible job Scheyer did to assemble this roster

Josh, Dustin, and Raul discuss the new additions to the Duke Men's Basketball staff, Alexander Powell and KJ Conklin. They explore how Conklin's experience at both the college and NBA level will help him succeed as a Duke assistant coach. They talk about how Scheyer continues to innovate, bringing in Powell to a brand new position as Executive Director of Basketball. Then they take a closer look at Duke's wing rotation for this upcoming season. What areas can Dame Sarr realistically improve upon in his second year? And is Sarr a lock for a starting spot? Where does Sebastian Wilkins fit into this deep Duke rotation? Can Bryson Howard have a freshman Isaiah Evans-like impact as a sparkplug off the bench?

Josh and Raul are joined by Brian Geisinger of 247Sports and the Buzz Beat podcast to break down the expectations for Duke newcomers John Blackwell and Joaquim Boumtje-Boumtje. Topics include: Whether Blackwell will operate more on ball or as a movement shooterBlackwell as a screen setterHow Duke has made use of similar players to Blackwell under Jon ScheyerBlackwell's midrange gameHow to evaluate Joaquim Boumtje-Boumtje's overseas productionBoumtje-Boumtje's shooting ability at his sizeAreas where Boumtje-Boumtje still needs to developHow Boumtje-Boumtje and Cameron Williams might complement and push each otherWhat year two of Boumtje-Boumtje might look like as more opportunities open upBrian's work can be found at https://briangeisinger.substack.com/

With the news that John Blackwell has pulled out of the NBA Draft and will be playing at Duke next season, Josh, Dustin, and Raul take a look at Duke's loaded backcourt. Topics include: How many point guards does Duke actually have? Will Blackwell be used more on or off the ball next year? How will this abundance of guards affect Duke's style of play? What does the minute distribution look like among the guards? Does Blackwell lead the team in scoring? How will Cayden Boozer's responsibilities shift now that he is finally not playing alongside his brother? How does the Cayden Boozer-Caleb Foster dynamic differ from last year? What is Derron Rippey's best path to earning playing time? Where does this backcourt rank in terms of depth for Duke historically? They then talk briefly about the rumored exhibition game Duke will play against Kansas in Phog Allen Fieldhouse.

Josh, Dustin, and Raul are back to cover an assortment of Duke-related topics: Home-and-home series with Illinois announced Exhibition with Tennessee in the works If Michigan can't secure permission from Big 10 to play on Amazon Prime, who should Duke replace them with? Final 247Sports rankings released for the class of 2026 Why Cam Williams has the clearest path to playing time of the incoming freshmen NBA Draft lottery results Best team fits for Cam Boozer and Isaiah Evans? Duke alumni show out at the NBA Draft Combine John Blackwell performs well in scrimmage Maliq Brown gets invite to work out with Dallas Mavericks