Kevin Garnett gives Cooper Flagg eye-opening label ahead of Duke debut
Yesterday at 05:59 PM
With the hype surrounding Duke basketball freshman Cooper Flagg's NCAA debut, many wonder how good the nation's top prospect will be in his first season. After Flagg's rave review from an anonymous NBA executive, claiming he could start on an NBA team today, Hall of Fame forward Kevin Garnett weighed in on the prospect's potential. On an episode of "KG Certified," the 2008 Finals champion compared the prospect's trajectory to another Duke product before Flagg.
"When I see him play, he's got superstar around him. I could see kids wanting to be like that and play like that. Real talk, when I see him move, I'm like, okay," Garnett said. "Like you see the bones. Remember when Paolo [Banchero] was at Duke, and he was playing the collegiate game, and we kept saying his game is going to look better when he gets to the league? That's kind of how I'm looking at Cooper Flagg."
Paolo Banchero averaged 17.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.1 blocks in his lone season at Duke. He led Duke to the Final Four, where he lost to North Carolina. Then, Banchero was selected first overall by the Orlando Magic in the 2022 NBA Draft. He won the Rookie of the Year award before making his first All-Star team in 2024.
For Garnett, Flagg could be heading down a similar path.
"He's already polished enough to be considered on that next level. That's what I'm looking at," Garnett added. "He's got the superstar potential that you could come in and put products behind him. We haven't had no bad a**, cold a** white boy like this in a long time."
Either way, Kevin Garnett is looking forward to seeing how Flagg's career unfolds from the collegiate level to the pros.
"Now we're going to see how you grow. How are you going to develop? Are you that dude? When I see Chris Webber, when I seen freshmen come in their first year, and show out. Let's see it."
Flagg signed an endorsement deal with New Balance over the summer.
Anonymous executive claims Cooper Flagg could start in the NBA today
A poll of 20 NBA executives and scouts conducted by ESPN's Jonathan Givony and Jeremy Woo asked who would be the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. 16 of the 20 voters polled picked Duke basketball freshman Cooper Flagg, and one executive took it a step further while projecting Flagg as his No. 1 overall pick.
"I haven't studied this class deeply enough yet, and I'm sure our boards will all change, but from what I saw at Hoop Summit and in Vegas with USA Basketball, good luck catching that guy," one voter told Givony and Woo. "[Flagg] could start for our team tonight and make a huge impact with his toughness, feel, and instincts on both ends. His shooting looks good also."
Duke opens up the 2024-25 season on November 4.
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