John Blackwell Withdrawing From Draft, Transferring To Duke

After declaring for the draft as an early entrant this spring, guard John Blackwell will remove his name from consideration and play college basketball in 2026/27, reports Chris Haynes of NBA on Prime (Twitter link).

Blackwell has spent his first three college seasons at Wisconsin but will transfer to Duke for his senior year, Haynes notes.

As a junior in 2025/26, Blackwell increased his scoring average to 19.1 points per game on .430/.389/.859 shooting in 34 contests (33.8 MPG). He also contributed 5.1 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.1 steals per game for the Badgers, earning a spot on the All-Big Ten third team.

This was the second straight year in which Blackwell tested the draft waters. He participated in the combine in Chicago last week and performed well in 5-on-5 scrimmages, scoring 16 points on day one. However, his measurements – including his wingspan – were underwhelming and likely didn’t do much to help his draft stock. He’s currently ranked 81st on ESPN’s big board.

Blackwell will be automatically draft-eligible in 2027 after playing for the Blue Devils next season.