Duke’s staff is still in the early stages with the 2029 class, but one name already worth watching is Greensboro Day School sophomore big man Grant Duggins.
The 6-foot-9, 215-pound five-star is sitting at No. 9 nationally and No. 1 in North Carolina in the early 2029 SCNEXT 25, and he was recently on campus for an unofficial visit while NBA Blue Devils were in town. Duggins said the trip gave him a chance to meet people inside the program and get a feel for the place.
"At Duke, I met the whole team and met the coaches,” he told Zagsblog's Matt Whitfield during his time at the USA Basketball Men's Junior National Team Minicamp in Colorado Springs, Colo., this past weekend. "It was great to go there.
I was just there for a day. They were having their pro pickups, but none of the pros played; it was just the college guys, and I got a chance to play a little with them and meet all the guys."
Duggins also said Duke is among the schools reaching out the most right now. Florida, Florida State, Iowa, Kansas, NC State, and UNC are in that group as well.
The Tar Heels could have some built-in appeal if they decide to push for him, too. Duggins made it clear where his roots were.
"My family and extended family were UNC fans, and I kind of leaned towards UNC," Duggins explained to Whitfield, "but right now I'm neutral. I cheer for good basketball."
That makes UNC a school to monitor if and when the heavy recruiting starts, but Duke already has his attention this early in the process. For now, the Blue Devils are simply doing the groundwork, and Duggins is one of the first elite 2029 prospects tied to that effort.
The scouting reports back up the buzz. 247Sports national recruiting expert Travis Branham included Duggins in his spring 2029 write-up and pointed to a skill set that stands out for a young post player.
"Duggins has great feet and feel on the block with counter moves," Branham noted about the gifted overall talent, whose dad, Adam Duggins, is a 7-footer who averaged 5.8 points and 4.3 rebounds across four seasons at William & Mary in the early 2000s. "He can put the ball on the deck and score off the dribble, he can fly off screens and hit shots from three, he's a good passer, he blocks shots and rebounds at a high level."
247Sports has not released its first rankings for the 2029 class yet, but Branham said Duggins has a chance to land near the top when that list comes out.
"When they do [come out]," Branham added, "Duggins has a chance to be among the best in the class."
Duggins is still in the early part of his recruiting journey, and Duke’s current focus remains elsewhere in the pipeline. The Blue Devils already have 2027 commitments from Australian five-star guard Luke Paul and Wisconsin Lutheran School five-star forward Kager Knueppel, along with offers to two 2028 prospects who could move up to 2027 in Coatesville Area High School (Pa.) five-star forward Colton Hiller and St. Francis High School (Calif.) five-star center Yann Kamagate.
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