Australian PG Luke Paul Commits to Duke, Everything to Know About Projected Lottery Pick

The Duke men's basketball team landed one of the top international prospects in the 2027 class.

Australian point guard Luke Paul told ESPN's Olgun Uluc that he has committed to the Blue Devils. Paul is considered a potential lottery pick for the 2028 NBA Draft.

Sources told Uluc that Paul chose the Blue Devils over offers from USC, Auburn, Arkansas and Arizona State.

Paul currently stars for the Cairns Taipans as a member of the NBL's Next Stars program and will complete the 2026-27 season in Australia before stepping onto campus at Duke next year. The youngster told Uluc that he has aspirations of making it to the NBA.

"I want to get to the NBA and be a lottery pick, and I trust in their player development to get me there," Paul said. "In saying that, winning a national championship at Duke is the ultimate goal for me."

A 6'6" floor general, Paul had a breakout performance at the 2026 FIBA U17 World Cup as he led Australia to a bronze medal, averaging 15.3 points, 6.4 rebounds, 7.1 assists, 1.4 steals, and 1.3 blocks per game. He shot 55.6 from three-point range and earned a spot on the tournament's All-Star Five, alongside future Duke teammate Joaquim Boumtje-Boumtje of Team USA.

Paul also revealed that it took just one call with head coach Jon Scheyer and the rest of Duke's coaching staff to convince him that joining the Blue Devils was the right decision.

"The family aspect of the program appealed to me," he said. "I jumped on the call with Coach Scheyer and the rest of the coaching staff, and really got the feeling that it's going to be home for me. I put trust in them, and they put trust in me, that we'd be able to do something special. I went away from that call with a lot of confidence that it was right for me."