Duke basketball coach [autotag]Jon Scheyer[/autotag] did it again on Tuesday night when four-star forward Nikolas Khamenia picked the Blue Devils over the UCLA Bruins and Gonzaga Bulldogs.
Khamenia, a 6-foot-8 forward from the Harvard-Westlake School in California, is 247Sports’ 19th-ranked player in the Class of 2025. One. of the fastest risers in the country, he sat outside the top 50 as recently as this January.
“Khamenia has a terrific overlap of size, skill, and a very high basketball IQ,” 247Sports director of scouting Adam Finkelstein wrote in his scouting report. “He has great instincts and natural feel for the game. He’s an exceptional passer who can throw darts off the dribble with both hands…He processes the game incredibly quickly.”
Khamenia’s commitment comes as a small last-second surprise. One recruiting expert filed a Crystal Ball prediction for him to pick the Bruins on Monday afternoon, but two others called their shot for the Blue Devils just an hour before Khamenia announced his commitment.
The North Carolina Tar Heels and Arizona Wildcats also offered Khamenia and hosted him for a visit, but he’ll be in Durham next fall instead.
Khamenia becomes the third 2025 prospect to pick the Blue Devils just this month. Cameron and Cayden Boozer, twin brothers from Columbus High School in Miami, announced their joint commitment to Duke on October 11. All three players sit within the top 25 on 247Sports rankings, and Cameron is one of the highest-rated players to ever commit to the program.