One of the consensus national player of the year has announced that he is expected to leave Duke after completing his freshman season; oddsmakers still have the Blue Devils as favorites to win the 2026 national championship.
Duke finished this season with a 35-4 record, losing 70-67 in the Final Four to Houston, which pulled off a dramatic last-minute comeback.
As of Monday, BetRivers, FanDuel, and DraftKings all listed Duke as +1000 favorites to win the 2026 title.
Houston, which lost 65-63 in the national final to Florida on Monday, was the unanimous second favorite, with DraftKings and FanDuel listing them at +1200 and BetRivers at +1300. Florida will need to replace NBA-bound All-America guard Walter Clayton Jr.
Other schools expected to contend include UConn at +1400 on DraftKings, BYU at +1600, and St. John’s and Purdue at +1800. Arkansas, Kentucky, and Kansas were all listed at +2000.
FanDuel had Louisville and Purdue at +1400, with Kansas and BYU at +1600, followed by Arkansas, Auburn, Alabama, and UConn all at +1800.
On BetRivers, Arkansas, Louisville, Purdue, and BYU were all listed at +1400, with UConn at +1700 and Alabama, Kentucky, and Auburn at +1800.
BYU’s rise in the rankings is largely due to their commitment from AJ Dybantsa, the top-rated incoming freshman, who chose BYU over Kansas, North Carolina, and Alabama in December.
Florida, the newly crowned national champion, was listed at +2500 by FanDuel, BetRivers, and DraftKings.
Auburn, the top overall seed in this year’s NCAA tournament before falling 79-73 to Florida in the national semifinals, was also listed at +2500 by DraftKings.
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