{"id":718158,"date":"2026-04-26T01:12:28","date_gmt":"2026-04-26T01:12:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/718158\/"},"modified":"2026-04-26T01:12:28","modified_gmt":"2026-04-26T01:12:28","slug":"duke-basketball-center-patrick-ngongba-to-return-next-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/718158\/","title":{"rendered":"Duke basketball center Patrick Ngongba to return next season"},"content":{"rendered":"

Durham<\/p>\n

Duke center Patrick Ngongba II has decided to stay with the Blue Devils another season.<\/p>\n

Ngongba\u2019s return was announced Monday by the basketball program, which posted a photo on social media of Ngongba that said \u2018back.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ngongba was said to be considering a move to pro basketball, but the 6-11 sophomore has decided on another year of development before making that move.<\/p>\n

Ngongba, playing with Cameron Boozer, had a consistently good season for the Blue Devils, averaging 10.1 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.0 assists a game. He was slowed by foul problems at times but was a space-eater and presence in the paint when he was in the game \u2013 he averaged 22 minutes of playing time last season.<\/p>\n

\"Duke Duke center Patrick Ngongba II (21) dunks over St. John\u2019s forward Zuby Ejiofor (24) and guard Ian Jackson (11) in the first half during the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament on Friday, March 27, 2026, at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. Robert Willett rwillett@newsobserver.com <\/p>\n

Ngongba, who is listed at 250 pounds, has been hampered by foot problems and missed the 2026 ACC Tournament as the Blue Devils won. He also was held out of Duke\u2019s NCAA Tournament opener against Siena before returning for the TCU game, when he played 13 minutes in the Blue Devils\u2019 comeback win against the No. 16 seed.<\/p>\n

Ngongba was in for 17 minutes in the Devils\u2019 Sweet 16 win over St. John\u2019s, and 22 minutes in the loss to Connecticut in the regional final.<\/p>\n

Ngongba\u2019s return should help incoming freshman Cameron Williams more easily transition to the college game. The 6-11 forward from Phoenix, a 5-star recruit, could take over the power forward position filled last season by Boozer, who is expected to enter the NBA draft.<\/p>\n

Since the Blue Devils ended a 35-3 season, forward Nikolas Khamenia and guard Darren Harris have transferred out of the program.. Guard Cayden Boozer has announced he will return for his sophomore season and now Ngongba. Still to make decisions are forwards Isaiah Evans and Dame Sarr, and guard Caleb Foster.<\/p>\n

\"Duke\u2019s Duke\u2019s Patrick Ngongba II (21) gets to the loose ball before Michigan’s L.J. Cason (2) during the first half of Duke\u2019s game against Michigan in the Capital Showcase at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026. Ethan Hyman ehyman@newsobserver.com \"Duke\u2019s Duke\u2019s Patrick Ngongba II (21) celebrates slamming in two in the first half of Duke\u2019s game against St. John\u2019s in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Men\u2019s Basketball East Regional at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., Friday, March 27, 2026. Ethan Hyman ehyman@newsobserver.com <\/p>\n

This story was originally published April 20, 2026 at 11:51 AM.<\/p>\n

Related Stories from Raleigh News & Observer<\/p>\n


\n \"Profile
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

Chip Alexander<\/a><\/p>\n

The News & Observer<\/p>\n

In more than 40 years at The N&O, Chip Alexander has covered the N.C. State, UNC, Duke and East Carolina beats, and now is in his 15th season on the Carolina Hurricanes beat. Alexander, who has won numerous writing awards at the state and national level, covered the Hurricanes\u2019 move to North Carolina in 1997 and was a part of The N&O\u2019s coverage of the Canes\u2019 2006 Stanley Cup run.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Durham Duke center Patrick Ngongba II has decided to stay with the Blue Devils another season. Ngongba\u2019s return…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":718159,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[3723],"tags":[7,217,231,772,1544],"class_list":{"0":"post-718158","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-ncaa-basketball","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-college-basketball","10":"tag-ncaa","11":"tag-ncaa-basketball","12":"tag-ncaab"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116468354672386533","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/718158","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=718158"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/718158\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/718159"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=718158"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=718158"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=718158"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}