3 Kansas Players To Monitor in Duke Basketball's Final Exhibition

The Duke Blue Devils will wrap up preseason play with an exhibition game against No. 17 Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse on Sunday (1:00 pm ET, ESPN).

Through two preseason contests at Cameron Indoor Stadium, the Blue Devils have looked practically unbeatable. Duke defeated Belmont 102-62 in a scrimmage on Oct. 8, then ran No. 8 Tennessee out of the building on Tuesday night, 103-64.

Given it's still October, Jon Scheyer's club already looks very far along, specifically on the defensive end of the floor. Although, the Jayhawks could pose the toughest challenge yet for the Blue Devils. Kansas has played two exhibition games, defeating Division II Pittsburg State 80-62 and losing to Louisville on Wednesday, 89-83.

Here are three Jayhawks to monitor ahead of Duke's final preseason contest.

Melvin Council Jr.

Returning veteran Melvin Council is one of a few key players Bill Self brought back via the courts, as Council was granted a preliminary injunction to play this season and return to Kansas. A season ago, Council was a key player on a Kansas team that earned a 4-seed in the NCAA Tournament, averaging 12.7 points and 5.1 assists per game on 39.2% shooting from the field.

With the addition of Council and Kansas' other newly eligible players, the Jayhawks' 2026-27 ceiling is clearly much higher. Council and Tre White were two fifth-year returnees for Kansas, and they were arguably the best players on the floor on Wednesday night against the Cardinals.

Council went for 20 points, six boards, and four assists on 8-of-15 shooting from the field and 3-of-6 shooting from three-point range. He's a high-level floor general and really got things going for the Jayhawks on Wednesday night. Council was a fan favorite in Lawrence last season because of his energy and intensity for all 40 minutes, and he should be one of their biggest impact players this year.

Taylen Kinney

Taylen Kinney is Bill Self's other 5-star freshman guard this season, alongside 2026 No. 1 high school recruit Tyran Stokes. Stokes is immensely talented at 6'8", but I was pretty impressed with Kinney's skill set against Louisville.

The rookie has a high motor, defended the ball with intensity, and has great burst in the open floor. Kinney is also a high-level athlete with the ability to move through contact. Against the Cards, he notched four points, six dimes, and a steal on 2-of-6 shooting.

Deron Rippey Jr. would be a fun matchup to see on Kinney, as both are quick athletes, and Kinney would pose a challenge for Rippey in the open floor.

Paul Mbiya

Kansas' latest signing was former Purdue forward Trey Kaufman-Renn, but he did not play against Louisville. Paul Mbiya and former Duke player Christian Reeves were the Jayhawks' two main bigs against Louisville, and Mbiya looked like he could take a big step in his second season.

Mbiya has good footwork at 7'0" and 255 pounds and was a big-time threat in the pick-and-roll. The Democratic Republic of the Congo native tallied six points, six rebounds, a block, and a steal in 18 minutes against Pat Kelsey's club.

Duke hasn't been challenged much on the interior so far through exhibition play, but Kansas has a solid core of bigs, especially if Kaufman-Renn suits up on Sunday. Self didn't play both Mbiya and Reeves on the floor together much against Louisville, but that could change against the Blue Devils.

Scheyer and Co. have the personnel to be the most dominant interior team in the sport on both sides of the ball, but Kansas presents a different challenge down low than Duke's other two preseason opponents.