Cooper Flagg bold predictions for freshman year at Duke

11/16/2024 03:49 PM

Cooper Flagg has an elite standard to live up to in his freshman year at Duke basketball. The 2024 National High School Player of the Year is not only poised to be one of the best players in the country, but he’s playing for a Blue Devils program that only accepts National Championship runs annually.

Flagg is expected to be an NBA lottery pick after this season, and through his first four games, he’s already flashed his greatness. The 6-foot-9, 205-pounder’s most impressive outing thus far came against No. 19 Kentucky on November 12, scoring 26 points on 9-for-19 shooting with 11 rebounds, two assists, and two blocks across 32 minutes.

Flagg’s blend of size, speed, and natural scoring ability give him the chance to dominate the college basketball landscape despite being just 17 years old, via ESPN’s Jeff Borzello and Myron Medcalf.

"There's a world in which Flagg lives up to all the hype and produces a Carmelo Anthony-esque run, leading Duke to a national championship," they wrote when explaining why Flagg got the top spot in their preseason NCAA men’s hoops top 100 players rankings. "It's within his range of outcomes. There's nobody else in the country with that sort of ceiling."

Additionally, the Maine native’s advanced skillset for his age puts him in elite company historically, via ESPN’s Jay Bilas.

"He's one of the unique talents to come along over the years," said Jay Bilas, a former Duke player who's now in his 30th year as a college basketball analyst with ESPN. "There have been other great players, whether it's Kevin Durant or, you name it, Derrick Rose. We've had some great ones, and he's in that mix.

"With his size, his skill level, athleticism and his competitive nature, there aren't many like him. … He plays with an edge. He's very confident, but not cocky. He impacts the game in a lot of different ways, which not everybody does. … When you keep in mind that he's a freshman who hasn't even turned 18 yet, then you're ultra-impressed by that. That's not the norm. He gets it at this age."

Will Flagg live up to the hype? Let’s get into our bold predictions for his freshman season.

Cooper Flagg will lead Duke basketball to the Final Four

While Flagg is the head of the snake for No. 6 Duke, supporting pieces like fellow freshman guard Kon Knueppel and junior guard Tyrese Proctor, who each scored double-digits in the 77-72 loss to the Wildcats, provide enough support for the team to make a deep run in March. The Blue Devils’ weakness may be their depth, as they ran an eight-man rotation that produced only six bench points against Kentucky. However, top-end talent can take a team far, especially when it has the country’s best player.

Flagg and company may have to compete with the likes of UConn, Kansas, Gonzaga and more to reach the Final Four, but the young phenom should have enough experience in big moments by that point to be a dependable closer in close games.

Cooper Flagg will win National Player of the Year

While Flagg had three costly turnovers against the Wildcats, he’ll be on track to win the National Player of the Year if he averages his numbers from that game throughout the year, especially against the nation’s best teams. Former Purdue big man Zach Edey took home the honors last year after averaging 25.2 points on 62.3% shooting with 12.2 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game, and also the year before with 22.3 points on 60.7% shooting with 2.1 blocks.

Flagg is unlikely to match Edey’s field goal percentage and block totals, since he’s not a center. However, if he continues to develop his passing skills, he’ll more than make up for that through assists.

Cooper Flagg will be the NCAA scoring champion

Similar to the National Player of the Year award, Flagg will most likely win the scoring title if he averages around 26 points per contest in non-buy games. Edey won the award last season.

While the Kentucky game is the only reliable sample to reference thus far, Duke’s upcoming games against No. 9 Arizona and No. 1 Kansas will give him more chances to prove himself against the country’s best squads. With Flagg already established as Duke’s prized possession, though, he’ll likely have the green light to shoot constantly, even if he’s having an off day. He’s been first or second on the Blue Devils in field goal attempts in each of their four games so far.

Fellow stars such as North Carolina’s RJ Davis and Kansas’ Hunter Dickinson will challenge Flagg, but the 2022 USA Basketball Male Athlete of the Year will narrowly beat them due to volume shooting.

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