For Duke, every season begins with expectations of a national championship. That was the case under Mike Krzyzewski, and remains true under Jon Scheyer.

The Blue Devils have another roster worthy of national title talk, and the AP Poll voters see it, ranking Duke No. 2 in the 2026-27 preseason poll.

Scheyer’s squad returns critical pieces in Dame Sarr, Caleb Foster, Cayden Boozer and Patrick Ngongba, while adding transfers John Blackwell and Drew Scharnowski, plus true freshmen Cameron Williams, Deron Rippey Jr. and Bryson Howard.

Duke spent three weeks atop the AP Poll last season, including in the final regular-season poll. The Blue Devils went on to be the No. 1 overall seed in the 2026 NCAA Tournament, ultimately falling to UConn in the Elite Eight.

The Blue Devils begin their regular season on Nov. 2, hosting Army.

Here is the complete preseason AP Poll:

  1. Florida
  2. Duke
  3. Illinois
  4. UConn
  5. Arizona
  6. Michigan State
  7. Texas
  8. Tennessee
  9. Virginia
  10. Houston
  11. Louisville
  12. Arkansas
  13. St. John’s
  14. Miami
  15. Gonzaga
  16. Michigan
  17. Kansas
  18. Iowa State
  19. Texas Tech
  20. Alabama
  21. USC
  22. UCLA
  23. Vanderbilt
  24. Kentucky
  25. BYU

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES:

Missouri 167, Nebraska 70, Purdue 53, Ohio State 39, North Carolina 20, TCU 17, Saint Louis 13, VCU 12, Iowa 12, Virginia Tech 10, Indiana 8, Texas A&M 6, Villanova 6, Auburn 4, Marquette 3, Nevada 2, Grand Canyon 2, Utah State 2, Santa Clara 1

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This article originally appeared on Duke Wire: Duke starts at No. 2 in preseason AP Poll

Source: Yahoo Sports