Since Mike Krzyzewski’s retirement, Duke basketball hasn’t missed a step — but the same can’t be said for North Carolina after Roy Williams walked away.
While critics once questioned how the Blue Devils would fare in the post-Coach K era, Jon Scheyer and his staff have delivered a resounding answer: Duke is still elite. And if the 2025 NBA Draft wasn’t proof enough, look again — because no other blue blood, especially UNC, came close to matching it.
All five of Duke’s starters from the 2024–25 season heard their names called on draft night. Three were top-10 picks. Cooper Flagg went No. 1 overall to Dallas, Kon Knueppel followed at No. 4 to Charlotte, and Khaman Maluach rounded out the trio at No. 10 to Phoenix. Add second-round picks Sion James (No. 33 to Charlotte) and Tyrese Proctor (No. 49 to Cleveland), and you’ve got one of the most impressive draft hauls in recent history.
Meanwhile, in Chapel Hill, things haven’t gone nearly as smoothly.
UNC had just one player drafted in 2025 — Drake Powell, who went No. 22 to the Brooklyn Nets. Under head coach Hubert Davis, the Tar Heels have struggled to develop multiple NBA-ready players year over year. In fact, since Davis took the reins, Carolina hasn’t produced a single draft class with more than one selection. In 2023, they had no one drafted at all.
And it’s not just about pro talent — the Heels’ on-court product has been wildly inconsistent.
Despite entering the 2024–25 season ranked in the top 10, UNC barely made the NCAA Tournament and needed every ounce of luck to secure a spot as one of the last four in. They haven’t claimed an ACC Tournament title under Davis and have yet to string together a deep March Madness run since their Cinderella-like push to the national title game in 2022 — which, notably, included their win over Duke in Coach K’s final game.
But that feels like a distant memory now.
In 2023, the Tar Heels became the first team in history to go from preseason No. 1 to missing the NCAA Tournament entirely. And after earning a 1-seed in 2024, they bowed out in the Sweet Sixteen.
Duke, on the other hand, has made both a Sweet Sixteen and a Final Four under Scheyer in just three seasons — while continuing to be a launchpad to the NBA.
The reality is clear: Duke reloaded, UNC regressed.
As pressure builds on Hubert Davis and questions swirl in Chapel Hill, Durham is thriving. The Blue Devils aren’t just surviving without Coach K — they’re thriving in a new era, and their bitter rivals are struggling to keep pace.
