It's been a preseason of extremes for Duke's NBA alumni — one star is already watching from the training room, another is finally healthy enough to give fans hope, a third is battling for a starting job in the league's toughest backcourts, and a fourth just secured his financial footing in Phoenix.
Ingram's Clippers Debut on Hold
The biggest Duke story of the week — and arguably one of the bigger injury stories of the preseason — belongs to Brandon Ingram. The All-Star forward, acquired by the Los Angeles Clippers in the trade that sent Kawhi Leonard to the Toronto Raptors, won't see the floor to start the 2026-27 season after surgeons discovered a partially torn Achilles tendon during what was supposed to be routine heel surgery. The Clippers made the announcement official after Ingram underwent the procedure, and no firm return timeline has been set. For a franchise that built its offseason around pairing Ingram with a retooled roster, the news is a gut punch before a single preseason game has been played. Ingram has dealt with injury setbacks before, but a partial Achilles tear carries a different weight — both physically and psychologically — than most ailments.
Zion Turns Heads in New Orleans
The contrast couldn't be sharper in New Orleans, where Zion Williamson is generating the kind of early training camp buzz that Pelicans fans have been starved for. Reports out of camp describe an "eyebrow-raising" start from the former No. 1 pick, with encouraging signs about his conditioning and engagement heading into the season. For a player whose NBA career has been defined as much by what-ifs and injury absences as actual production, a strong training camp showing — even in late September — qualifies as genuine news. Duke fans know better than most what Williamson can be when healthy. The question, as always, is sustainability.
McCain Making Noise in OKC
Jared McCain is entering his third NBA season with something to prove and apparently the willingness to travel nearly 2,500 miles to prove it. The former Blue Devil flew out to train with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren in the offseason, and Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault has taken note of his drive during Oklahoma City's training camp. McCain is pushing for a starting role in one of the Western Conference's deepest backcourts — no small task. He also found himself at the center of a lighter moment when a viral training camp video appeared to show him getting outrun by SGA, a clip McCain was quick to contest. "It wasn't a race," he told reporters, with the kind of competitive confidence that suggests he's not here to play a supporting role.
Maluach Gets His Option Picked Up
Khaman Maluach earned a vote of confidence from Phoenix this week, with the Suns exercising the contract option on the young center. It's a procedural move, but a meaningful one — it signals that the organization sees enough in the Duke product to keep him in the fold as the franchise navigates its roster construction heading into the season.
Around the Rest of the Duke Alumni Network
Elsewhere, Paolo Banchero has been publicly setting the bar high for Orlando, declaring an NBA Finals goal for the Magic's season. New head coach Sean Sweeney has drawn early praise from both Banchero and fellow Duke alum Wendell Carter Jr. In Boston, Jayson Tatum is back and healthy, with the Celtics counting on an MVP-caliber season from their cornerstone. And in Dallas, Cooper Flagg is picking up rave reviews from veterans in the Mavericks' locker room, with PJ Washington singling him out for the way he's handled his second NBA training camp. Duke's fingerprints are all over this league — the preseason has only underscored how wide that footprint has become.
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