Mock Draft Puts Duke Basketball Product at Bottom of First Round

Two 2025-26 Duke basketball players are projected to hear their names in Brooklyn.

Mar 26, 2026; Washington, DC, USA; Duke Blue Devils forward Cameron Boozer (12) jokes with Blue Devils guard Isaiah Evans (3) during a practice session ahead of the east regional of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

The first round of the 2026 NBA Draft takes place on Tuesday, June 23. There's a strong possibility that 2025-26 Duke basketball teammates Cameron Boozer and Isaiah Evans both come off the board that night. But judging by recent mock drafts, there's also an outside chance that Evans will have to wait until the second round the following night.

On Tuesday afternoon, CBS Sports national expert Adam Finkelstein published his latest projection for the top 30, listing Boozer at No. 2 overall (to the Indiana Pacers should Sunday's NBA Draft Lottery give them that pick), sitting below the projected top overall pick in BYU one-and-done AJ Dybantsa (to the Washington Wizards). And Finkelstein has Evans barely squeaking into the first round at No. 30 to the Dallas Mavericks (pick comes courtesy of a previous trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder).

As things stand, should Evans actually wind up in Dallas, he would join three fellow NBA Blue Devils with the Mavericks in Kyrie Irving, Dereck Lively II, and reigning NBA Rookie of the Year Cooper Flagg.

"Floor spacing for Cooper Flagg with a former Duke teammate seems to make a lot of sense," Finkelstein wrote in his assessment of Evans, who started all 38 games for a 2025-26 Duke basketball squad that finished 35-3 overall, won the ACC Tournament, and reached the Elite Eight.

Mar 27, 2026; Washington, DC, USA; Duke Blue Devils guard Isaiah Evans (3) dribbles the ball against the St. John's Red Storm in the first half during a Sweet Sixteen game of the East Regional of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images | Amber Searls-Imagn Images

"Evans showed an ability to make the type of quick-release movement threes that translate to the NBA level. In other words, he's not just someone who stands in the corner. He's someone Jason Kidd can run plays for..."

After averaging only 6.8 points off the bench as a freshman in 2024-25, Isaiah Evans bumped that mark to 15.0 as a sophomore while shooting 36.1 percent beyond the arc on 7.4 attempts per outing. The 6-foot-6 wing from Fayetteville, N.C., added 3.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists.

One Duke Basketball Transfer Gearing Up for NBA Draft Combine

Of course, both Isaiah Evans and Cameron Boozer, the only two 2025-26 Duke basketball talents to declare for the NBA Draft with college eligibility remaining, received invites to next week's NBA Draft Combine in Chicago. So did one of their senior teammates in ACC Defensive Player of the Year Maliq Brown (a potential second-round pick).

Meanwhile, Duke's top transfer prize, former three-year Wisconsin Badgers guard John Blackwell, is also gearing up for the NBA Draft Combine.

However, the current expectation is that Blackwell, an All-Big Ten Third Team selection this past season, will withdraw his name from the NBA Draft ahead of the NCAA's deadline on May 27, thereby retaining his eligibility to suit up for the Blue Devils as a senior next season.

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