Duke forward and former Gonzaga recruiting target enters transfer portal

One of life's well-known proverbs can now be directly applied to the world of college basketball recruiting: If at first you don't succeed, try try again.

Mark Few and the Gonzaga Bulldogs heavily pursued a handful of elite 5-star recruits in the 2024 and 2025 classes, including Zoom Diallo, Isiah Harwell, and Nik Khamenia.

Those three ended up spurning Gonzaga for Washington, Houston, and Duke, respectively, but all three are available for recruitment once again, having each entered the NCAA transfer portal.

The latest of the bunch is Khamenia, a 6'8 forward from Los Angeles who Gonzaga aggressively pursued for multiple years before he committed to the Blue Devils. The Zags brought him on campus for a visit at Kraziness in the Kennel back in 2023, and again for Kraziness a year later in 2024.

NEWS: Duke's Nik Khamenia will enter the transfer portal, his agency, Excel Sports, told DraftExpress.

The 6'8 wing was a top-15 recruit in the class of 2025 and a key rotation player this season, averaging 5.7 points in 20 minutes. Will have a huge line of P5 suitors. pic.twitter.com/ZgNfJkni0o
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) April 8, 2026

However, a late push from Duke resulted in the top-15 recruit and McDonald's All-American heading east to Durham to play for Jon Scheyer and the Blue Devils, where he appeared in 38 games and averaged 5.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.0 assists in 19.8 minutes this past season.

Khamenia was an efficient role player for Duke, shooting 60.6% on two pointers and 34% from three on 2.7 attempts per game.

He scored a season-high 14 points on three different occasions, first at home against Louisville on 5-6 shooting in just 15 minutes, then at home against Syracuse in mid-February, and finally against Clemson in the ACC Tournament, where he played 31 minutes and grabbed six rebounds while shooting 3-6 from three.

Considered a potential one-and-done talent due to his size and floor spacing ability, Khamenia will now look to boost his draft stock at a new program - and should have no shortage of suitors.

Fit at Gonzaga

Gonzaga has just four returners on the roster in Braden Huff, Davis Fogle, Mario Saint-Supery, and redshirt Parker Jefferson, after losing five players to graduation and another five to the transfer portal.

Huff can play either the four or the five, while Fogle is expected to primarily play the three but can slide up and play small-ball four as well. That creates an opening for a player like Khamenia, who has the size to play the four and the skill and athleticism to play the three - something coach Few has always coveted in Gonzaga wings - a la Corey Kispert, Julian Strawther, and Tyon Grant-Foster.

While Khamenia wouldn't solve Gonzaga's rim protection issues, his ability to space the floor would work wonders for Huff down on the block as it would force defenders to stay out on the perimeter, making it harder to double-team and easier for Huff to score one-on-one on the block.

Khamenia and Fogle would be a very problematic pair on the perimeter for opposing defenses, and Gonzaga's high octane offense would provide an environment for Khamenia to thrive - while ensuring plenty of NBA scouts have their attention on him as well.

Expect UCLA, Arizona, North Carolina, and many other high profile programs to check in on Khamenia, who immediately becomes among the more attractive players available in the transfer portal. Gonzaga's previous interest, open space on the roster, and playstyle offensively should make them an attractive destination for Khamenia, and could be a huge get for coach Few and the staff this spring.

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