On Wednesday, Isaiah Evans announced his decision to declare for the 2026 NBA Draft, and as the day went on, it became increasingly evident that the atmosphere surrounding Duke Basketball has shifted in a notable way.
This isn’t meant as a criticism of anyone, but consider whether this resonates: Duke fans these days seem to feel a stronger personal connection to Jon Scheyer’s teams than they did with some of Mike Krzyzewski’s later squads.
Part of that might simply come down to age. At 38, Scheyer is still young enough to be playing himself, and he has young, adorable children. But even more of it likely stems from the genuine bond he has built with his players.
We shared a video on Wednesday showing Scheyer shooting threes and before each shot, he would ask his players, “Do you believe in me?” They truly appear to, largely because he embodies a player-first coaching style. Last year, Cooper Flagg’s mother, Kelly, said, “Cooper would run through a brick wall for that man.”
Scheyer gives his players plenty of ownership, and in return, they feel deeply invested.
There’s a noticeable youthful energy and renewed spirit in the program now. Duke fans have witnessed this before: the 1978 team was extremely young for its era, and when Duke reached its first Final Four under Coach K, that team had a youthful vibe as did Coach K himself.
Last season, the team leaned heavily on freshmen stars Flagg and Kon Knueppel, and while Evans was also a five-star freshman, he wasn’t yet ready to deliver greatness night after night.
Still, he produced some spectacular moments as a first-year player most memorably when he single-handedly shredded Auburn in the ACC-SEC Challenge.
People tend to forget that Auburn was ranked No. 2 in the nation at the time, and that the Tigers jumped out to a 13-2 lead in Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Evans turned the game around by coming off the bench and draining six three-pointers in the first half.
Last season, he struggled on nights when his shot wasn’t falling, but this year Evans has developed into a far more complete player. His value now extends well beyond three-point shooting. He has plenty to offer an NBA team, and we’re eager to see where his basketball path leads him.
