The Duke Blue Devils had an impressive season on their way to the Final Four, but their journey came to a shocking end on Saturday night when they squandered a 14-point lead in the second half against the Houston Cougars, ultimately losing 70-67 despite holding the lead for most of the game. This defeat likely marks the end of Cooper Flagg’s college career following his historic freshman season, as he remains the projected No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming NBA Draft. On Friday, Flagg expressed that he would consider it a blessing to be selected by any NBA team. “It would be a blessing for me to get drafted by any team in the NBA,” Flagg said. “That’s a dream of mine, to play in the NBA. I would feel completely blessed and honored to play for any team.”
While Flagg’s decision seems nearly certain, he has yet to make an official announcement, especially given that his season just concluded less than 24 hours ago. However, he did accept the prestigious Naismith Trophy on Sunday morning for being named Player of the Year. During the ceremony, Duke’s head coach Jon Scheyer expressed his pride in Flagg’s remarkable freshman season and the legacy he has built. “Good morning, everyone. I just want to take 90 seconds before passing this to Cooper. He and I obviously didn’t get much sleep last night, but I don’t want that to overshadow the incredible season this guy’s had,” Scheyer said. “He’s been an absolute joy to coach. He’s done historic things, and I couldn’t be more proud of what he’s done for our program. You see the stats and highlights, but I want you to know the kind of person he is every day.
He’s the best teammate, shows up ready to work, and when the pressure’s on, he rises to the occasion—just like last night. His 27 points, carrying us, and we were just one play short. I couldn’t be prouder to be his coach.”
Flagg has led the Duke team in points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, and minutes played this season. He finished his freshman year averaging 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.4 steals, and 1.4 blocks, while shooting 48.1% from the field, 38.5% from beyond the arc, and 84.0% from the free-throw line. While Flagg had previously hinted at the possibility of returning to Duke months ago, that now seems increasingly unlikely. This is further underscored by Scheyer’s comments on March 31 during an appearance on the “Dan Patrick Show,” where he emphasized that Flagg should declare for the draft.
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