Dan Hurley, UConn Poach Former 5-Star From Duke in Transfer Portal

The Duke Blue Devils' season ended in the Elite Eight at the hands of the Connecticut Huskies, and on Saturday they lost one of their highly recruited prospects from last year's class to them in the transfer portal.

Dan Hurley and the Huskies landed a commitment from former top-15 player in the Class of 2025, Nikolas Khamenia, who averaged 5.7 points and 3.3 rebounds for Duke last season in a mostly bench role. He also posted 10.7 points per game during the ACC Tournament when the team was shorthanded.

Khamenia is a 6-foot-8 stretch forward and is expected to help fill the void left by Alex Karaban, a key piece for UConn over the past several seasons.

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Hurley was spotted last week out to dinner with Khamenia, and that's when rumors about a potential move to Storrs really began to heat up. Just days later, he made it official, giving UConn a major addition and putting the program in strong position heading into the 2026–27 season.

The Huskies already have Silas Demary Jr. and Jayden Ross set to return, and they're still awaiting a decision from Braylon Mullins - a potential major boost if he comes back for next year's roster.

UConn has had some roster turnover, but likely not as much as Hurley may have originally anticipated. The Huskies only saw Jaylin Stewart, Eric Reibe, and Jacob Furphy enter the transfer portal among the more notable departures.

Like Mullins, the program is also still awaiting a decision from Solo Ball, which would be another key piece potentially returning to the roster.

More news: Duke Gets Big News That Could Have Major Impact on 2026 Season

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This story was originally published April 18, 2026 at 11:46 AM.