CHAPEL HILL — They were teammates and champions in the summer of 2024 and, by this time next year, they’ll be NBA rookies grinding against established veterans to establish their place in the league, to earn victories and, maybe, to win rookie of the year honors.

Right now, however, Duke’s Cameron Boozer and North Carolina’s Caleb Wilson are about to play for the first time in college basketball’s biggest and best rivalry as two of the best freshmen in the country.

“It’ll definitely have a big impact on my legacy,” Wilson said. “I feel like that’s something that’s really important to me and, like said before, honestly, nobody cares unless you win.”

No. 4 Duke (21-1 overall, 10-0 in the ACC) won all three meetings with the Tar Heels last season. No. 14 North Carolina (18-4, 6-3) swept the Blue Devils in two meetings in 2023-24. Wilson attended the first meeting that season in Chapel Hill and was in the locker room for the celebration that included pouring water on coach Hubert Davis.

“It was exhilarating,” Wilson said.

The game is Saturday at 6:30 p.m. in Chapel Hill. ESPN’s College GameDay will broadcast from the Dean E. Smith Center earlier in the day.

Wilson, Cameron Boozer and Duke point guard Cayden Boozer were teammates on Nightrydas Elite and won the Peach Jam championship in 2024, a Nike showcase for the top high school players in the country. In the title game, they defeated a team led by AJ Dybantsa, now a star freshman at BYU.

Cameron Boozer, Wilson and Dybantsa are just part of the high-performing and deep freshmen class that has taken over college basketball this season — is likely to make its impact on the NBA Draft this summer.

Wilson, a 6-foot-9 forward, leads the Tar Heels in points (20.0 per game), rebounds (9.8 per game), steals (34 total) and blocked shots (29 total).

“Really good competitor,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. “Obviously, he’s an explosive athlete. He’s dynamic. He can do a lot of different things on offense and defense. But the competitiveness, I think, has been high level and the ability to impact winning in a bunch of different ways has been really impressive.”

Cameron Boozer, a 6-9 forward, leads the Blue Devils in points (23.3 per game), rebounds (9.9 per game), assists (89 total) and steals (42 total).

“Cameron is an amazing player,” Davis said. “His ability to be able to score in many different ways — around the basket, getting fouled, get to the free throw line, threes. He’s an excellent passer. So he’s one of the best basketball players in the country.”

Wilson said he and Boozer were definitely close, bonded forever through winning the national championship at the Peach Jam, and still talk occasionally. They haven’t talked this week.

“He just plays smart, a really cerebral guy,” Wilson said. “He’s not going to be rushed or anything like that. He just plays basketball in a very mature way.”

The duo has some idea of what they are going to be walking into Saturday.  It is the 88th meeting between the teams when both are ranked, 47 more than any other matchup, according to ESPN’s Bryan Ives. In the previous meeting, UNC has won 44 times, Duke 43.

“We know how big of a deal the rivalry is,” said Boozer, who is the son of former Duke and NBA great Carlos Boozer. “The fans are going to be crazy. It’s going to be a great environment. We’re excited.”

Wilson said he’s been watching old Duke-UNC games on his phone since he committed. 

“I used to watch in class in high school,” he allowed. 

Now they’ll get their chance to play in the game, just like their coaches. Both Scheyer and Davis have experienced the game as players, assistant coaches and head coaches. Scheyer said he remembers his first game in the rivalry like it was yesterday. Wilson said Davis told the Tar Heels that he remembers all 11 of his match-ups with Duke, though Davis (4-6 vs. Duke as UNC’s head coach) said he can recall every game he’s ever played in – NBA, college and the pros.

“In this game, rankings go out the window,” said Scheyer, who is 5-2 as Duke’s head coach vs. UNC. “Records go out the window. Whether you’re playing home or away doesn’t matter, so I think you learn to appreciate each game.”