From his first putback score as a Blue Devil against an actual opponent to his splashes beyond the arc and contributions on the defensive end via two blocks and two steals, Duke basketball freshman forward/center shined across 22 minutes as a starter in Thursday night's 102-62 scrimmage win over the Belmont Bruins. Despite being less than five months removed from his 17th birthday and still adjusting to the college game, the 7-foot-2, 250-pound phenom played like a savvy veteran.
There's no doubt Belmont head coach Evan Bradds and his first batch of Bruins were without answers when it came to trying to minimize the effect of Boumtje Boumtje's overall prowess on both ends of the court. Yes, it sure appears as though Boumtje Boumtje, who arrived at Duke out of FC Barcelona and is the son of former Georgetown and NBA big man Ruben Boumtje Boumtje, has picked up where he left off in early summer when he was helping power Team USA's FIBA U17 World Cup dominance.
"I wasn't playing like him when I was 17; that's for sure," Bradds, who spent last season as a Duke basketball assistant under Jon Scheyer before accepting the Belmont job back in the spring, explained to Duke Blue Devils On SI during his postgame press conference as a visitor in Cameron Indoor Stadium. "You watch some of the FIBA stuff I've seen him play in, you watch the highlights, and you're really, really impressed.
"And then to see him up close: the size, the skill, the physicality, and the shooting touch, you know, it was unbelievable coming off his hands. So, for him to only be 17 doing a lot of that stuff with his size, obviously special player for a reason, and he showed why tonight in a lot of ways."
I asked former Duke basketball assistant and first-year Belmont head coach Evan Bradds for his thoughts on 17-year-old Blue Devil freshman Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje tonight. pic.twitter.com/WcF5eEdSAz
– Matt Giles (@MattGilesBD) October 9, 2026
Young Duke Basketball Star Reflects on Eye-Popping Preseason Opener
Boumtje Boumtje tied Duke basketball starting sophomore wing Dame Sarr with a game-high 19 points. He shot 7-for-11 from the field, 2-for-5 from deep, and 3-for-5 at the foul line.
6'11" –> 7'2" –> pic.twitter.com/pzGtgEfFFa
– Duke Men's Basketball (@DukeMBB) October 9, 2026
Plus, Boumtje Boumtje tied fellow frontcourt starter Patrick Ngongba II, now in his third year as a Blue Devil, with a game-high seven rebounds.
In the locker room afterward, Boumtje Boumtje expressed his appreciation for now competing in front of the Cameron Crazies in Durham after only arriving at Duke for the first time in early July and having never even visited the campus before committing to Jon Scheyer and the Blue Devils just a few months earlier.
"I mean, it feels like actually I just got here," Boumtje Boumtje, on a two-year plan at Duke, said with a big smile on his face. "It was a long summer with a lot of work…It was a little bit of a confidence booster [starting off hot against Belmont] to keep showing how hard I've worked. And I trusted myself. So, it's a good starting point, for sure."
Next up for Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje and the rest of the Blue Devils is a home exhibition bout against the Tennessee Volunteers on Tuesday, Oct. 20, at 7 p.m. ET (ACC Network).
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- Versatile Duke Basketball Energy on Display in Preseason Debut Victory
- 3 Instant Observations From Duke Basketball Scrimmage Win Over Belmont
- Why Duke Basketball Rookie Bryson Howard in Unique Position
- How Boumtje Boumtje's Confidence Will Fuel Duke Basketball Rookie Year
- What Stood Out in Duke Basketball's Lopsided Win Over Belmont
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/duke as Former Duke Basketball Assistant Left Admiring Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje.