Duke Basketball Lands Visit From Breakout Prep Nikola Bundalo

Duke basketball is slated to host potential five-star prospect and admitted UNC basketball fan Nikola Bundalo.

Western Reserve Academy (Ohio) four-star power forward Nikola Bundalo, No. 24 overall and only two notches outside five-star territory on the 247Sports 2025 Composite, has scheduled a Duke basketball visit for Sept. 15 and also plans to check out Southern Cal and Michigan State soon, he recently told Rivals' Houston Wilson.

The 6-foot-9, 210-pound stretch-four lefty doesn't hold an offer from the Blue Devils. Furthermore, before this visit news popped up, there hadn't been reports on social media of any significant interest from Duke basketball head coach Jon Scheyer or his assistants in the recruitment.

But Bundalo's stock is on the rise. He's amassed over a dozen offers this summer and gone from unranked and unrated in June to, as noted above, now knocking on the door for that coveted fifth star by his name.

Some clips of 6’9 2025 PF Niko Bundalo (7’0 wingspan) from this past weekend‼️📈

- Runs like a 🦌
- Great hands, finishes left shoulder or right shoulder in the post
- Grabs boards and initiates the break
- Shoots the three off catch + bounce
- Plus athlete@wildcatselect pic.twitter.com/LcbHt51IzB

— Tom Droney (@tdroney_) May 2, 2023

And it's worth pointing out that he's not the only budding 2025 prep still absent from Duke's official wishlist who plans to be in Durham three weekends from now. The other is Highland (Va.) four-star Nate Ament, a long-limbed wing ranking two spots below Bundalo.

Somewhat surprisingly, neither Bundalo's offer sheet nor his reported visit plans yet include the Blue Devils' archrivals eight miles down Tobacco Road. Perhaps that won't be the case much longer. After all, he's made clear his longtime UNC basketball fandom.

"An offer I really want is UNC," Bundalo explained to On3's Jamie Shaw in July. "I grew up a fan of them and haven't gotten the opportunity to talk with the coaches there yet...

"My mom is from Chicago. She grew up watching Michael Jordan when she came over to the United States. So, watching Michael Jordan and all of the documentaries and his old highlights, UNC just kept coming up. So she started liking UNC, and so did I, and they were the school I kept watching through my whole childhood."

That may prove difficult for any other suitor to overcome should the Tar Heels eventually enter the race.

Meanwhile, including the two additions to the list this month, Duke basketball offers are in the hands of eight undecided 2025 preps (composite rankings in parentheses below) at the time of this article's publishing. Note that, like potential full-fledged targets Nikola Bundalo and Nate Ament, they all rank among the top 30 in the class:

• Five-star point guard Meleek Thomas (No. 6)
• Four-star point guard Brayden Burries (No. 27)
• Five-star combo guard Jalen Haralson (No. 8)
• Five-star combo guard Cayden Boozer (No. 19)
• Five-star power forward Cameron Boozer (No. 1)
• Five-star power forward Koa Peat (No. 3)
• Five-star power forward Caleb Wilson (No. 4)
• Five-star center Khaman Maluach (no composite ranking yet, but On3 ranks him No. 8)

RELATED: Former Duke Star Coaches Giant Blue Devil Target Khaman Maluach

Stay tuned to Blue Devil Country on SI.com for more Duke basketball recruiting news.