Duke Women's Basketball Makes Top 5 for Elite 2027 Forward

While Duke women's basketball has had a rough start to the 2025-2026 season, with a 4-6 record through their first 10 games, Kara Lawson and her staff are still finding success on the recruiting trail.

Although the Blue Devils are still concentrating on the 2026 recruiting cycle, they have already started making progress with some of the top prospects in the 2027 class, including a four-star power forward who recently named Duke as one of her top five schools.

Four-Star 2027 Power Forward Includes Duke in Top 5

On Dec. 14, Eve Long, a four-star power forward from Olathe South High School in Olathe, Kansas, announced her top five schools on X, naming Duke alongside Kansas, Notre Dame, UCLA, and UConn.

Top ✋🏿🤍 #grateful #excited #trustingtheprocess #lockedin #thejourney pic.twitter.com/g7IY0y16gh
— 𝔼𝕧𝕖 𝕃𝕠𝕟𝕘 (@eve_long23) December 14, 2025

Long is one of the highest-rated recruits in the entire 2027 class with Rivals' industry rankings listing her as the No. 8 overall player in the country, the No. 1 power forward, and the No. 1 prospect from Kansas.

Not only is Long a star for Olathe South, but she was also a member of the 2025 USA Women's U16 national team, which won the gold medal at the 2025 FIBA Women's AmeriCup.

Nov 3, 2025; Paris, FRA; Duke Blue Devils forward Toby Fournier (35) reacts after a play against the Baylor Bears during the first half at Adidas Arena. Mandatory Credit: Chris Jones-Imagn Images | Chris Jones-Imagn Images

After naming her final five schools, Long spoke about each one with Rivals' Talia Goodman. When discussing Duke specifically, the 6'3" forward explained that although the Blue Devils just recently offered her in November, she knows the school's rich basketball history and expressed her excitement to continue building relationships with the current Duke players.

"Duke’s been recruiting me for a long time, especially when I was younger," Long told Goodman. "They really believed in me and I actually just got an offer from them in November. That was really cool with Duke.

Duke Log — Oct 4, 2024; Durham, NC, USA; Duke Blue Devils center court logo before the Countdown to Craziness at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images | Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images

She continued, "They have a lot to offer because they’re Duke – amazing basketball school. I’m excited to just keep building connections with their players, because I haven’t met any of their players. I know they have two really great 2026’s that committed there, who are my friends."

While Duke has made Long's top five, she did note that North Carolina being pretty far away from her home in Kansas is something that worries her.

Oct 3, 2025; Durham, NC, USA; Duke Blue Devils head coach Kara Lawson is introduced during player introductions at the Countdown to Craziness at the Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images | Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images

"They’re still a lot farther away – a lot of my schools are farther away – but Duke’s pretty far away from home," Long said to Goodman. "So I just want to know, like, if I choose to go to Duke, am I going to be comfortable there?”

As a 2027 prospect, she likely still has a decent way to go before she makes a decsion, but it appears that the Blue Devils have still established themselves as a serious contender to win her recruitment.

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