'Slim' Picks Duke Basketball Program for Sophomore Season

Evidently, Duke basketball guard/forward Isaiah Evans will neither test the NBA Draft waters nor enter the transfer portal. No, the 6-foot-6, 175-pound freshman from Fayetteville, N.C., will instead return to Durham for his sophomore campaign under fourth-year Blue Devil head coach Jon Scheyer.

ALSO READ: One Prospect to Monitor in Blue Devil Transfer Pursuits

On Tuesday evening, just over six hours ahead of the deadline to enter the transfer portal, the official Duke basketball social media account posed the following question to Isaiah "Slim" Evans: "yo Slim you back?"

One minute later, to the delight of Blue Devil faithful, Evans responded, "yea."

yea
— Isaiah Evans (@IsaiahEvans26) April 22, 2025

After arriving last summer as a five-star prospect, Evans eventually emerged as a key piece to the rotation for a squad that finished No. 1 in the AP Top 25 Poll and reached the Final Four. He averaged 6.8 points and 1.1 rebounds in 13.8 minutes per contest, shooting 43.2 percent from the field, 41.6 percent from three, and 81.3 percent at the foul line.

Isaiah Evans becomes the third 2024-25 Duke basketball player to confirm a place on the 2025-26 Blue Devil roster, joining fellow freshman wing Darren Harris and sophomore guard Caleb Foster.

The Blue Devils add at least three five-star prizes from the recruiting trail in the heralded Boozer twins, forward Cameron and guard Cayden, plus forward Nikolas Khamenia.

Stay tuned to Duke Blue Devils On SI for more Duke basketball news.