Chris Collins Sends Emotional Message to Duke's Jon Scheyer

Collins and Scheyer were part of a National Championship-winning Duke Blue Devils team.

Feb 10, 2009; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; Duke Blue Devils assistant coach Chris Collins talks to his players at the Dean E. Smith Center. The Blue Devils defeated the North Carolina Tar Heels 64-54. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

The connections between Northwestern head coach Chris Collins and Duke head coach Jon Scheyer are plentiful. Both were named Illinois Mr. Basketball at Glenbrook North High School (Collins in 1992, Scheyer in 2006), went on to become All-ACC players at Duke and now are the head coaches of Power Four basketball teams.

Collins was an associate coach at Duke from 2000 until he was hired by Northwestern in 2013. He recruited Scheyer to Durham in 2006, and four years later, the Blue Devils won their fourth National Championship. Under head coach Mike Krzyzewski and assistant Collins, Scheyer became a consensus Second-Team All-American in 2010.

Now the head coach at his alma mater, Scheyer has the Blue Devils in the Final Four for the first time since Krzyzewski's retirement in 2022. Entering the National Semifinals, Duke is 35-3 behind stellar freshman Cooper Flagg, and Scheyer has received his flowers for the Blue Devils' dominance.

Scheyer was named the 2025 John McLendon National Coach of the Year, an award given to the top head coach in college basketball. Collins shared his congratulations to his longtime friend in an emotional video on Thursday.

"You never cease to amaze me," Collins said. "Ever since I've known you when you were a little guy, all you've ever done is dreamt big and gone after things and done everything. You were an amazing player, and now you're turning into one of the best coaches in all of college basketball. So proud of you — so lucky to be a part of your journey."

Collins also shared a photo he had in his office from Scheyer's time as a player while Collins was on the Duke staff.

The two future head coaches' journeys split after Scheyer's graduation in 2010. Collins remained an assistant coach at Duke for three more seasons before leaving for Northwestern, while Scheyer played in the NBA G League and overseas. Scheyer returned to Duke in 2014 as an assistant and became the associate head coach in 2018.

Scheyer succeeded Krzyzewski in 2022 and has led the Blue Devils to an 89-21 overall record, including 48-12 in the ACC, in the three years since.