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Kager Knueppel

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Kager Knueppel
No. 1 – Wisconsin Lutheran Vikings
PositionForward
LeagueWoodland Conference
Personal information
Listed height6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Career information
High schoolWisconsin Lutheran
(Milwaukee, Wisconsin)
CollegeDuke (commit)

Kager Knueppel (/kəˈnɪpəl/ kə-NIP-əl) is an American high school basketball player who attends Wisconsin Lutheran High School in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He is committed to playing college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils.

Early life

[edit]

Knueppel attends Wisconsin Lutheran High School in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. As a freshman in 2023–24, he teamed with his older brother Kon on a Vikings team that went 30–0 and won the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) Division 2 state championship.[1] As a sophomore, Knueppel averaged 13.5 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game.[1] He helped Wisconsin Lutheran compile a 28–2 record and capture the WIAA Division 1 state championship, scoring 10 points in the state title game, a 57–55 win over Marshfield High School.[2][3] As a junior, Knueppel teamed with two of his brothers, Kinston and Kash, as well as his cousin Zavier Zens.[4] He averaged 16.4 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 3.6 assists per game.[5] Knueppel led the team to a 30–0 record and another WIAA Division 1 state championship. He posted 16 points and seven rebounds in a 57–37 win over Madison Memorial High School in the state title game.[6][7]

Knueppel played with Team Herro on the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League (EYBL) circuit. In 2025, he helped the team reach the Peach Jam 16U semifinals.[8] In 2026, Knueppel helped Team Herro advance to the Peach Jam 17U semifinals.[9] He averaged 11.6 points, 5.4 rebounds, and three assists across seven games at the tournament.[10][11]

Recruiting

[edit]

Knueppel is a consensus four-star recruit and one of the top players in the 2027 class, according to major recruiting services.[12][13][14] He received his first NCAA Division I offer from Toledo in December 2024.[15] Following additional offers from Butler and DePaul, Knueppel received his first power conference offer from Purdue in January 2026.[16][17] He picked up an offer from Wisconsin in February,[18] followed by offers from Duke and Texas A&M in April.[19][20] Knueppel was ranked as the No. 122 recruit in his class by 247Sports before jumping to the No. 28 spot in the June 2026 rankings update.[21] The increased recruiting attention was attributed to strong performances that offseason with Team Herro as well as a growth spurt which shot him up to 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m).[22]

On June 29, 2026, Knueppel verbally committed to playing college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils, following in his older brother's footsteps. He also became the first member of Duke's 2027 recruiting class.[22][23][24]

Personal life

[edit]

Knueppel is the second-oldest of five boys; his brothers' names are Kon, Kinston, Kash, and Kidman.[25] When Kon was selected by the Charlotte Hornets in the 2025 NBA draft, the five brothers were interviewed live on the ESPN broadcast by Monica McNutt.[26] Knueppel was born into a basketball family. His parents, Chari (née Nordgaard) and Kon Knueppel, played college basketball at Wisconsin–Green Bay and Wisconsin Lutheran College, respectively, each finishing their careers as their school's all-time leading scorers.[25][27] His father and his uncles Klint, Klay, and Kole competed in the Gus Macker 3-on-3 and Hoop It Up tournaments as the "Flying Knueppel Brothers" in the 1990s and early 2000s.[26] Kole went on to work as a college football referee in the Big Ten Conference.[28]

On his mother's side, the Nordgaard family is a storied athletic family in Wisconsin that spans several generations.[29] His great-grandfather was Arthur "Bud" Rose, the family patriarch who played football and basketball at NC State and married Charlotte Hill Rose, who competed in basketball, swimming, and archery at UNC Greensboro. Their daughter Eleanor, who excelled in intramural sports at Minnesota–Morris in the pre-Title IX era, married John Nordgaard, who played football and basketball at North Dakota State College of Science and Minnesota–Morris and signed with the Atlanta Falcons of the NFL before being drafted for military service. His father, Wally Nordgaard, played college football and basketball at Minnesota. Eleanor and Jeff had four children, all of whom excelled in sports. The oldest, Jeff, played college basketball at Wisconsin–Green Bay before playing in the NBA for the Milwaukee Bucks and later professionally in Europe. He married Alexis Proffitt [it], who had a standout college basketball career at Butler, and both of their sons played college sports. Jeff's siblings include Julie (who married basketball coach Tod Kowalczyk), Chari (Knueppel's mother), and Kami, who played volleyball at South Carolina and married former Wisconsin–Whitewater volleyball player Kevin Davis.[29] Kami's son (and Knueppel's cousin), Zavier Zens,[25][29] will play college basketball at Illinois.[5]

References

[edit]
  1. 1 2 Fisher-Shotton, Rowan (May 17, 2025). "Duke's Jon Scheyer Makes Move on Kon Knueppel's Brother". Athlon Sports. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  2. ↑ Miller, Mark (March 23, 2025). "D1 Title Game: Wisconsin Lutheran rallies past Marshfield". Prep Hoops. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  3. ↑ "Boys Basketball Champions Crowned Saturday". Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association. March 23, 2025. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  4. ↑ Timlin, Pat (March 6, 2026). "Family ties power Wisconsin Lutheran for another basketball state title run". WISN 12. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  5. 1 2 Bellman, Zac (May 7, 2026). "Kager Knueppel's recruitment heating up ahead of senior season". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  6. ↑ Bellman, Zac (March 22, 2026). "Wisconsin Lutheran is perfect once again to finish three-peat quest". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  7. ↑ "Wisconsin Lutheran's Third Straight Title Highlights Five Boys Basketball Champions". Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association. March 22, 2026. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  8. ↑ Zagoria, Adam; Lance, Sam (July 21, 2025). "Kon Knueppel's younger brother drawing high-major interest". Zags Blog. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  9. ↑ Baltes, Mack (July 20, 2026). "Duke's Kager Knueppel finishes strong at Peach Jam to end AAU season". Duke Wire. USA Today. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  10. ↑ "Nike EYBL Peach Jam: 17U All-Circuit Teams". The Circuit Hoops. July 21, 2026. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  11. ↑ Straine, Hugh (July 20, 2026). "Duke Commit Kager Knueppel Turns Heads in Peach Jam Semis". Duke Blue Devils on SI. SI.com. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  12. ↑ "Kager Knueppel, Wisconsin Lutheran, Power Forward". 247Sports. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  13. ↑ "Kager Knueppel - Basketball Recruiting - Player Profile". ESPN. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  14. ↑ "Kager Knueppel - Wisconsin Lutheran - Small Forward". Rivals.com. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  15. ↑ Giles, Matt (December 26, 2024). "Duke Basketball Freshman's Younger Brother Gets First D1 Offer". Duke Blue Devils on SI. SI.com. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  16. ↑ Heyen, Billy (January 31, 2026). "Duke, Hornets star Kon Knueppel's brother Kager picks up D-I basketball offer from Big Ten". The Sporting News. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  17. ↑ Giles, Matt (January 31, 2026). "Duke Basketball Recruiting Prospect Kager Knueppel Grabs Another Offer". Duke Blue Devils on SI. Retrieved July 22, 2026 – via Yahoo Sports.
  18. ↑ Kenney, Ben (February 24, 2026). "Wisconsin basketball offers Kon Knueppel's younger brother". Badgers Wire. USA Today. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  19. ↑ Baltes, Mack (April 29, 2026). "Duke joins recruiting race for Kager Knueppel, Kon's younger brother". Duke Wire. USA Today. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  20. ↑ Ohnysty, Cameron (April 30, 2026). "Texas A&M has offered the brother of Charlotte Hornets star rookie". Aggies Wire. USA Today. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  21. ↑ Bossi, Eric (June 18, 2026). "2027 basketball rankings update with 12 top risers, newcomers: Recruiting intel, scouting takeaways". 247Sports. Retrieved July 22, 2026. (subscription required)
  22. 1 2 Nagel, Cody (June 30, 2026). "Kager Knueppel, Kon's younger brother, commits to Duke basketball". CBS Sports. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  23. ↑ Steele, Ben (June 29, 2026). "Kager Knueppel commits to Duke like older brother Kon II". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  24. ↑ Alexander, Chip (June 29, 2026). "There's another Knueppel headed to Duke to play basketball for the Blue Devils". The News & Observer. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  25. 1 2 3 Kuhagen, Christopher (March 21, 2026). "What is Knueppel family tree? Kon and his brothers, cousin Zavier Zens". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  26. 1 2 Steele, Ben (June 25, 2025). "Knueppel family – including sets of brothers – in the spotlight as Kon II is picked in NBA draft". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  27. ↑ Bellman, Zac (December 9, 2022). "Wisconsin Lutheran's Kon Knueppel, a DI basketball recruit, is guided by parents who were stars as well". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  28. ↑ Heyen, Billy (November 29, 2025). "Is Kole Knueppel related to Kon Knueppel? Ohio State-Michigan referee has family connection to Duke, Hornets star". The Sporting News. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
  29. 1 2 3 Hansen, Oscar (January 4, 2024). "Spanning across generations". Marshall Independent. Retrieved July 22, 2026.
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