Cooper Flagg earned the respect of some of the best basketball players in the world during Team USA’s scrimmage on Monday. The 17-year-old played like he belonged on the same court as LeBron James and Stephen Curry, not shying away from any matchups. But that doesn’t mean he wasn’t nervous before the game.
“I was definitely nervous,” Flagg told Yahoo Sports. “But as soon as I stepped on the court and got in between the lines, most of the pressure I was feeling or anything else I was thinking about went away. It was a great opportunity and a great experience to be able to share the court with players of that caliber.”
At one point, Flagg pulled Jrue Holiday off the dribble and, when Anthony Davis activated the screen, he hit a contested 3-pointer over Davis. He was all over the court, rebounding, playing inside and out and showing why he is the favorite to be the No. 1 pick in next year’s draft.
Team USA beat the Select Team 74-73, but every player on the national team’s 12-man roster applauded Flagg afterward.
Flagg was the first college player invited to play for the Select Team in more than 10 years. And his confidence in coming in and playing against several future Hall of Famers didn’t happen overnight. The 6-foot-8 forward was in the gym with Jayson Tatum and Curry last summer for their two invite-only camps. Both Tatum and Curry are very hands-on, getting involved in drills and scrimmages with the top high school players in attendance. Tatum even invites other NBA players to participate so the high school players get a real dose of the pace and physicality of the NBA.
“It definitely helped me being in Tatum’s camp last year and playing 4-on-4 and 5-on-5 with a full team of pros,” Flagg said. “It kind of helped me start to build that confidence. At the end of the day, it just comes down to having confidence in myself and what I can do.”
Flagg was the No. 1 ranked player in his high school senior class and moved up a grade. He played his final high school season for powerhouse Montverde Academy (Fla.), which he led to a 33-0 record and the national high school title. He chose Duke over UConn and Kansas and will lead the way. The number 1 recruiting class for next season. With all the talent coming in and key players returning, Duke will have a huge target on its back. Flagg is up to the challenge.
“I don’t think we’d want it any other way,” Flagg said. “That’s how it is every year (at Duke) and we want to keep it that way. I think just taking on the role and having a target on our backs and using it to help us all come together is going to make us closer as a team. We’re going to learn a lot and get better from this.”
With how well Flagg played against Team USA and his highly-anticipated freshman year at Duke, he is the heavy favorite to be the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, a stacked draft class that also includes Ace Bailey and VJ Edgecombe.
NBA scouts and executives have been able to watch Flagg play since he was a player in the Nike EYBL circuit’s Under-15 division three summers ago. They’ve followed his progress and have a good idea of his potential as an NBA player. There will be teams that decide to go for Flagg this year, and the Brooklyn Nets are already in rebuilding mode after trading away Mikal Bridges.
“He looks like a great player,” Kevin Durant told reporters Tuesday. “He’s 17 years old and he comes in here playing almost like a veteran. No emotion. He just goes out there and does his job. That’s a good sign.”