Cooper Flagg Odds Surge for Wooden Award Following Johni Broome Injury

Reed Wallach | Jan 13, 2025

Jan 11, 2025; Durham, North Carolina, USA; Duke Blue Devils forward Cooper Flagg (2) drives to the basket as Notre Dame Fighting Irish guard Markus Burton (3) defends during the first half at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images / Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images

The war of attrition continues to take its toll on college basketball as the long grind of the season picks up in conference play. 

Auburn big man and Wooden Award front runner Johni Broome suffered an ankle injury on Saturday against South Carolina that will cost him a handful of games. While the injury won’t be season ending, it has shaken up the odds for the National Player of the Year quite a bit on the heels of Duke freshman standout Cooper Flagg’s stellar game against Notre Dame. 

Flagg is now the overwhelming favorite to win the Wooden Award, translating to an implied probability of nearly 78%, essentially flipping spots with the injured Broome on the heels of his 42 points, six rebounds and seven assists on 78% shooting from the field in the Blue Devils win against Notre Dame. 

Last week, Broome was in the neighborhood of -245 with Flagg sitting as the second choice at +255.

Cooper Flagg vs. Notre Dame:

🔵 42 PTS (most by a freshman in men's ACC history)
🔵 11-14 FG
🔵 6 REB
🔵 7 AST pic.twitter.com/cLd1hfyYt7

— ESPN (@espn) January 11, 2025

Auburn and Duke look to be the two best teams in the nation this season, and if Broome returns in fine form shortly, it could set up an epic stretch run for the sport's most prestigious individual award. 

Here are the updated odds as conference play continues. 

2024 Wooden Award Odds

• Cooper Flagg, Duke: -350
• Johni Broome, Auburn: +340
• Kam Jones, Marquette: +600
• Chaz Lanier, Tennessee: +900

Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook

Cooper Flagg Emerges as Wooden Award Favorite

Broome was the front runner for the award as the senior big man proved to be the driving force behind one of the best teams in the nation, but the injury has paved the way for Flagg to become the favorite. However, even without injury, the future No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft was coming on strong. 

Flagg would enter rare air if he were to win the award for the nation’s best player, becoming the fourth player to win it since it was created in 1976. The three other freshmen to win the award were Kevin Durant , Anthony Davis and Zion Williamson. 

The Blue Devils' big man was electric against Notre Dame, now averaging over 19 points per game with eight rebounds and nearly four assists while shooting about 48% from the field. Flagg leads Duke in points, rebounds, assists, blocks and steals. 

What if @Cooper_Flagg is:

the best defensive player in college basketball

and

leads the team in scoring, rebounding, assists, steals and blocks

and

got a 4.0 fall GPA

and

turned 18 last month pic.twitter.com/AP9scx5IO5

— Duke Men’s Basketball (@DukeMBB) January 11, 2025

As we await word on the severity of Broome’s injury and a full timetable for his return, which isn't expected in the next week, this looks like Flagg’s award to lose. 

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Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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