Obsessed expert forecasts Duke basketball's 2024 NCAA Tournament seed

A high 2024 seed for Duke basketball isn't crazy, but the prediction's timing is nuts.

The only "sure things" for the 2023-24 Duke basketball roster are graduate center Ryan Young and the 2023 recruiting class, consisting of five five-star signees. There's no telling how many of the seven current freshmen will return, not to mention junior guard Jeremy Roach, and their announcements could be weeks or months away.

It's conceivable that a handful will leave via the transfer portal or an early entry into the pro ranks. Or most might stay in Durham for another run together following the No. 5 seed Blue Devils' NCAA Tournament exit at the hands of No. 4 seed Tennessee in the Round of 32 on Saturday.

Despite all the roster uncertainty at Duke and pretty much every other school — after all, this year's Sweet 16 isn't even underway — a Wednesday night graphic on ESPN2 revealed bracketologist Joe Lunardi's predictions for next year's top four seeds in each region.

Today is March 22, 2023 and this is on my TV pic.twitter.com/k2S9UdTnoD

— Pregame Empire (@PregameEmpire) March 22, 2023

Anyway, senseless or not, Lunardi pegs head coach Jon Scheyer's second Duke basketball team as the No. 4 seed in the East Region. And the Blue Devils are the only projected top-four seed from the ACC in Lunardi's eyes, suggesting they'll be the conference's frontrunner next go-round.

Although many on social media have criticized Lunardi for his way-way-too-early 2024 March Madness visions, remember that his primary job is to cover this particular niche.

It used to be that such projections would come out in the days and weeks following the NCAA Tournament. Moving forward, though, perhaps it shouldn't be surprising to see the following year's projections before the current year's March Madness begins.

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