Cooper Flagg has made it official.
The 6-foot-9 freshman forward from Duke has declared for the NBA Draft and is expected to be the No. 1 pick this summer.
“Really proud of Cooper or the special season that he had this year,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. “I think the accolades speak for itself with what he did, winning every National Player of the Year Award. His highlights, his statistics, the ways he impacted the game, on both ends of the floor, really in every category, was off the charts as good of a freshman season that a guy’s had here.
“But to me, the separator, the joy of coaching Cooper is the person he was every day, the teammate that he was -- never about statistics or anything other than creating an environment and helping his team to win. And we won a lot of games and had a lot of success. And a lot of times that that environment is created from your best player, and Cooper did an incredible job in every facet of our program.”
— Duke Men’s Basketball (@DukeMBB) April 21, 2025An absolute winner. Best player in the country. The #1 pick. 🙏 @Cooper_Flagg
After reclassifying ahead a year, Flagg entered college at 17 and didn’t turn 18 until December.
He went on to lead Duke in every category -- scoring (19.2 ppg), rebounds (7.5), assists (4.2), steals (1.4) and blocks (1.4).
In his last college game, Flagg went for 27 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 blocks and 2 steals but Duke blew a 14-point lead in the final 8 minutes of the national semifinals against Houston.
“It was an incredible season,” a dispirited Flagg said that night in San Antonio. “…It didn’t end the way we wanted it to, but still an incredible year."
The Draft Lottery is May 12 and at that point we will know which team has the right to the No. 1 pick.
The Utah Jazz, Washington Wizards and Charlotte Hornets each have a 14% chance at the No. 1 pick.
The Jazz are +550 on bet365 to select Cooper Flagg. This complete list of New Jersey sportsbook promos can help you find a sportsbook to use.
“It would be a blessing for me to get drafted [by any] team in the NBA,” Flagg said at the Final Four. “That’s a dream of mine, to play in the NBA. I would feel completely blessed and honored to play for any team.”
Flagg would be the fourth No. 1 pick for New Jersey coaching legend Kevin Boyle.
ESPN has compared Flagg to Jayson Tatum, Scottie Pippen and Kawhi Leonard.
“[He’s] positionless,” ESPN’s Seth Greenberg said on “Get Up.” “He is a perfect fit for the NBA. You think Grant Hill, you think Scottie Pippen, you think Jayson Tatum, he fits in the NBA game perfectly.
“He could be a point forward. he can initiate your offense. You can move him all over the floor. Positionless is what I think of Cooper Flagg.”
Carmelo Anthony says the fact that many college players are in their early-to-mid-20s now helped prepare Flagg for life in the NBA.
“I believe so,” he said at the Final Four when he was named to the Naismith Hall of Fame. “He’s already making the impact. In college, guys are 26, 27. It’s not like you’re playing against 17-year old. You’re playing against grown men in college. He had an opportunity to play against the USA [Olympic] Team in practice. You get that experience at 17, 18 years old.
“I just hope we, you, give him some grace. Give him time to develop a couple years.”
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Adam Zagoria is a freelance reporter and Basketball Insider for NJ Advance Media. You may follow him on Twitter @AdamZagoria and check out his Website at ZAGSBLOG.com.
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