2025 NBA draft scouting report for Cooper Flagg: Sharpening his scoring blade in crucial victory
After a heartbreaking loss to 10th-ranked Kentucky, Cooper Flagg led his Blue Devils to a 69-55 win over 17th-ranked Arizona. Flagg played a strong game against Kentucky but crumbled down the stretch with crucial turnovers. On Nov 22 against the Wildcats, he delivered from wire to wire.
The projected number-one pick continued his strong start to the year, tallying 24 points (10/19), 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 turnovers, 1 steal and 3 blocks. It’s his second 20+ point game in his last three as Flagg continues to develop as a scorer. We’ll focus mostly on the offensive side of the ball for this breakdown. Flagg’s creation will likely determine his ultimate ceiling; we know he’s a special defensive prospect.
Cooper Flagg's stats: How Duke's talisman is faring in the early part of the season
Early in his college career, Duke has asked Flagg to harbor a monstrous offensive load. His enormous 30.7% usage rate is the eighth-highest figure of all high-major players in college basketball and first among high-major freshmen.
This usage rate is on track to be historic, especially considering his size and age (Flagg is still 17). It’s important to consider the sample size but usage rate often stabilizes quickly. Since 2008, the only 6’9+ freshmen to top Flagg’s usage were Michael Beasley in 2008 and Demarcus Cousins in 2010.
Despite some scouts maintaining offensive concerns, Jon Scheyer has had no hesitation in letting Flagg run the Duke offense. He’s best as a slasher right now, winning with his excellent explosion and burst and scoring with touch. Flagg went 4/8 at the rim against Arizona and 2/4 from the line.
While Flagg hasn’t been incredibly efficient yet, he’s flashing the potential to become a deadly halfcourt creator. He has the rare athletic ability to self-create dunks for himself in the halfcourt, blowing past the Arizona defense in this pick-and-roll opportunity to score:
https://bsky.app/profile/bjpf.bsky.social/post/3lbputqi2hc2t
Against smaller defenders, Flagg has no problems winning as a post-up and face-up scorer. He isolates here, spinning and finishing through contact. Flagg’s physicality carving out space and graceful footwork let him score with ease here:
https://bsky.app/profile/bjpf.bsky.social/post/3lbpul6leq22t
When Flagg does get the chance to work off of other players, he’s a decisive and explosive attacker off of the catch. He’ll often draw fouls on these plays, as defenders have trouble limiting his explosion without fouling:
https://bsky.app/profile/bjpf.bsky.social/post/3lbpujykgds2t
Cooper Flagg's game still has some limitations
Flagg has to overcome poor spacing and multiple help defenders on quite a few of these drives. He rarely sees true one-on-one opportunities given his gravity and some of Duke’s offensive issues. On this drive, Flagg beats his first defender to the rim and scores over a second helper at the rim:
https://bsky.app/profile/bjpf.bsky.social/post/3lbpuoefy4k2t
His ballhandling limitations rear their heads when teams send multiple bodies. He had a few turnovers in this game that weren’t indicative of much, but this next play is an indictment of his current ball control. As Flagg spins and initiates contact, he loses balance and turns the ball over to Arizona:
https://bsky.app/profile/bjpf.bsky.social/post/3lbpv5qdeq22t
On this next play, Flagg drives to his left and misses a fairly open shot with his left hand after creating space with the behind-the-back. Even misses like these showcase Flagg’s ability to work downhill. Again, we’ll note the spacing here, as Maliq Brown clogs the paint, making this a tougher drive than it could be otherwise:
https://bsky.app/profile/bjpf.bsky.social/post/3lbpuylfxrk2t
And on a few of these drives, Flagg rushes himself into misses. It’s common for young players to play too fast, especially elite athletes who have been able to win with pure physical tools before. Hopefully, Flagg will learn how to play slower and with more control as he develops and matures:
https://bsky.app/profile/bjpf.bsky.social/post/3lbpuh6xpxs2t
Why Cooper's size and game will continue to evolve
Despite some of these misses, Flagg showcased his touch on multiple of these chances. He loves these push shots where Flagg can weaponize his size and touch to get shots off quickly near the basket:
https://bsky.app/profile/bjpf.bsky.social/post/3lbpub6bhns2h
When defenses pressure Duke, Flagg’s excellent touch and processing speed help him excel in advantage situations. In the second half, Flagg especially thrived as a screener and a short roll scorer. The Wildcats try to press Duke, but they find Flagg in the middle of the floor who gets the friendly bounce on the floater:
https://bsky.app/profile/bjpf.bsky.social/post/3lbpuwiail22t
Flagg’s vertical explosion is on full display in this next clip, once again coming from a screening opportunity. After setting the pick, Flagg leaps off of two feet, hanging around the defender to score. He’s such a graceful and powerful vertical athlete:
https://bsky.app/profile/bjpf.bsky.social/post/3lbpuvivkt22t
His 3-point shots haven’t fallen like they have in the past, as Flagg has made 6 of his 23 attempts this season from beyond the arc. In this game, Flagg drained 2 of his 5 threes, all coming with his usual confidence. Towards the beginning of the game. Flagg hit this triple with a defender closing hard:
https://bsky.app/profile/bjpf.bsky.social/post/3lbpugkzbck2t
Even his misses exude confidence, which is an excellent sign for future shooting development. Flagg relocates up to the wing and fires the quick-release three. It’s a good-looking shot despite the miss:
https://bsky.app/profile/bjpf.bsky.social/post/3lbpumwxtvc2t
Flagg’s floor spacing opens up his playmaking further. Defenses still treat Flagg like a shooter despite his struggles, closing out hard-to-open driving lanes. This next play is a great example of that — Flagg attacks off of the catch and passes to the shooter when the help sinks down to him:
https://bsky.app/profile/bjpf.bsky.social/post/3lbpvbjqhxs2t
Here, Flagg drives the baseline and draws defensive attention. It arguably would have been better for Flagg to pass to Brown open under the basket, but it’s still impressive to see Flagg passing with his offhand in midair:
https://bsky.app/profile/bjpf.bsky.social/post/3lbpvd2wcbk2t
He’s excellent at punishing aggressive pick and roll coverages. In this next clip, Arizona shows two bodies at Flagg as the pick and roll handler. He immediately responds with a pass over the top to Maluach, who converts the and one:
https://bsky.app/profile/bjpf.bsky.social/post/3lbpv3upjx22t
Flagg has plenty of things to clean up on the offensive end, but we shouldn’t overlook how rare his offensive role is for someone his age. Flagg’s scoring potential is sky high and that will fuel his eventual superstar ceiling.