Duke Placed In Top 5 For Five-Star 2027 Target

When Duke women's basketball head coach Kara Lawson wants a player, she does whatever it takes to go out and get them. Even though the Class of 2027 feels like it's a long time from now, it's really not.

Lawson made sure to stay ahead of the curve, which is exactly why she found the Blue Devils in the Top 5 for Haylen Ayers. The 6-foot guard is a highly touted five-star prospect. 247Sports lists her as the No. 1 shooting guard in the Class of '27 as she's the No. 3 player nationally.

For Lawson to be in contention for a major player such as Ayers it could immediately place her at the top of the Class of 2027. Duke's Class of '26 is already stellar, so looking even more into the future, one can only imagine the dynasty Lawson could start to build.

Duke In Contention For Haylen Ayers

Happy Halloween 🎃 pic.twitter.com/Y6c7RLpEps
— Haylen Ayers (@haylenayers) October 31, 2025

Not often does a Class of 2027 recruit narrow down their Top 5 before 2026 comes to an end. Ayers, one of the top players in her class, is not messing around. The No. 1 player in Tennessee is on a mission, and she's already been working overtime to figure out where her next future home will be.

Duke faces steep competition as it's tasked with going up against Texas, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, and UConn. Key teams not in the mix are South Carolina, LSU, and UCLA, among others. Ayers had over 30 offers thrown her way, but in the end, she landed on these five schools.

Vanderbilt is the only school out of the bunch in her home state of Tennessee. The Volunteers did not cut. October 31 marked the date of Ayer's announcement, one that saw a Halloween-inspired poster.

Class of 2027's Top Players

5 ⭐️ Haylen Ayers has announced her Top 5.

She’s the No. 5 player in the class of 2027. The guard plays in Jackson, TN.

Her mom also played for the Commodores. pic.twitter.com/0y18LERNyh
— Alaina Morris (@alainammorris) October 31, 2025

Looking past 2026, there are a few key names to look out for. Ayers is one of them, but 247Sports lists SF Ivanna Wilson-Manyacka at No. 2 while PG Kaleena Smith is the No. 1-ranked player. Each is the best at their own position, but either way, Ayers would be a game-changing addition to any of these five teams.

Shockingly, there are six players already committed in the Class of 2027. Two five-stars have already decided where they'll be going: Finley Chastain (Oklahoma) and Amisha Randall (Minnesota). The other four teams with commitments include: Ole Miss, Ohio State, Ball State, and South Dakota.

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