CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Strolling by the Hilton Resort in uptown Charlotte on Wednesday morning, you could not go greater than 5 minutes with out listening to his identify uttered by a media member, though he wasn’t within the constructing.
Cooper Flagg.
Will he reside as much as the hype? Is he the very best faculty prospect since Zion Williamson? Might he win the nationwide participant of the yr award?
The 6-foot-9 freshman headlines Duke’s No. 1-ranked recruiting class and is the clear frontrunner to be taken within the high slot on the 2025 NBA Draft. A Maine native, Flagg’s rise as a small-town child who places protection first — and is a rare athlete with a high-level IQ for his age — makes him essentially the most intriguing participant within the sport. He might be talked about each day all yr, and, in all probability, many extra years to come back. But, with all of that hype surrounding the Gatorade and Naismith Nationwide Excessive Faculty Participant of the 12 months, Flagg isn’t serious about all the thrill.
“Cooper has a variety of humility, and I imply a variety of humility,” Duke head coach Jon Scheyer mentioned of his top-ranked freshman. “Watching him, you see a confidence and a chip that he performs with, and I really like that too. However he genuinely desires to be coached on each little factor, and also you both have that otherwise you don’t. … It simply doesn’t make him higher — it makes our group higher as a result of it units the tone.Â
“If he’s going to just accept teaching to the best diploma, everyone else is as properly. He [has] been terrific with that.”
Flagg, who this previous summer time grew to become the primary collegian to affix USA Basketball’s gold medal group in coaching camp forward of the Olympics since Doug McDermott and Marcus Sensible again in 2013, averaged 16.5 factors, 7.5 rebounds, 3.8 assists and a pair of.7 blocks per sport to steer Montverde Academy to an undefeated 33-0 document and a nationwide championship as a senior in highschool.
“Cooper doesn’t care in regards to the media,” mentioned Tyrese Proctor, who is predicted to be Duke’s chief within the backcourt in his junior season with Jeremy Roach off to Baylor and Jared McCain being a one-and-done freshman (76ers). “He’s only a straight competitor. Clearly, with all the hype and stuff at 17 [years old], you’d assume it might play with him somewhat bit, however it doesn’t faze him in any respect. He’s a winner and that’s all he cares about. He’s a group participant and he can do the whole lot.Â
“He’s so versatile. The extent of competitiveness he has, that’s what makes him so good.”Â
“Cooper Flagg is as marketed,” sophomore guard Caleb Foster mentioned. “All people talks about him, however he’s only a humble child who suits in with all of us. He doesn’t attempt to make himself greater than what he’s. He’s only a winner who competes every single day at apply. He has one mindset: to take his group so far as he can.”
“He is aware of easy methods to win, and he does the whole lot he can to win,” Proctor added. “It doesn’t matter if there are 5 seconds or 10 seconds left in a sport — or 5 minutes — he’s going to do the whole lot he can in that second to win. I work with him on a regular basis, and he’s all the time within the fitness center.”
As for the large image in Durham, it’s a essential third season for Scheyer, who has gone 27-9 in every of his first two years on the helm with an Elite Eight journey that ended with a heartbreaking loss to 11-seed North Carolina State final March. Whereas Flagg is the marquee identify, he’s not the one highly-touted freshman in Duke’s top-ranked recruiting class, with NBA Academy Africa product Khaman Maluach and 6-5 wing Kon Knueppel as the opposite high names in a six-member class. Couple that with 4 transfers, together with Mason Gillis from Purdue and former Tulane star Sion James, and also you get a mixed 10 new faces on Duke’s roster.
“I’m shocked individuals aren’t speaking extra about Khaman Maluach,” Foster mentioned of the 7-1 middle who represented South Sudan in Paris because the youngest participant at this summer time’s Olympics. “He’s a freak athlete. … I’ve by no means performed with anyone like him. He has a 9-8 wingspan. It’s not honest. He protects the paint and I believe he’s forward of his time.”
Scheyer was extraordinarily complimentary of Knueppel, who averaged 25.9 factors, 8.6 rebounds and 5.3 assists per sport as a senior at Wisconsin Lutheran Excessive Faculty en path to incomes the state’s participant of the yr honors.Â
“Each one in every of our freshmen has had moments, however what stands out about Kon is he’s giving us these moments every single day,” mentioned Scheyer. “He has the appropriate habits. From offensive footwork to defensive footwork, he’s been a pure. He’s obtained toughness from inside. He is aware of easy methods to play by contact and he can actually shoot the ball. He’s been superior.”
What’s the highest problem for the 37-year-old Scheyer heading into the 2024-25 season? It’s balancing the top-flight freshman expertise with breaking by and getting Duke to the place the place expectations all the time are inside Cameron Indoor Stadium: a Ultimate 4.
“It’s the hardest factor for me as a result of I’m naturally very impatient,” Scheyer mentioned. “I’m an impatient individual, however I additionally really feel that’s why I’ve been capable of finding success in my profession and simply not really feel like I’ve to attend — and to simply go for it and win. However on the similar time, it’s a course of. I don’t need our guys simply hanging their hat on successful and shedding. I wish to go 40-0. We wish to win each sport, however I need them controlling their effort every single day and their competitiveness every single day, and I believe that every one comes naturally.Â
“I haven’t mastered it by any means, however I do know we’ve got to be affected person. We have now two of the 5 youngest gamers in faculty this yr, and I’m betting on these guys, however we’ll undergo some rising pains at instances.”
John Fanta is a nationwide faculty basketball broadcaster and author for FOX Sports activities. He covers the game in a wide range of capacities, from calling video games on FS1 to serving as lead host on the BIG EAST Digital Community to offering commentary on The Discipline of 68 Media Community. Comply with him at@John_Fanta.
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