Potential Nets' Target Cooper Flagg Sustains Injury

With March Madness rapidly approaching, the basketball world continues to get ready for what usually is a platform for college stars to display their abilities ahead of the annual NBA Draft.

The Brooklyn Nets are set to find themselves as one of the teams who are going to be watching the tournament extra carefully given their increased odds at a lottery pick, sitting among the teams who have a higher likelihood of securing a more favorable pick.

One player that the Brooklyn front office is certain to be following is Cooper Flagg, who is currently in his freshman season at Duke University.

To say Flagg has been having a breakout season would be more than an understatement, averaging 19 points per game on an efficient 49 percent from the field, while also securing seven boards per game. Thanks to these efforts, the 18-year-old was named both the ACC's Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year, among other accolades from the collegiate league.

Apart from his individual achievements, Flagg played a pivotal role in Duke's season, helping them finish on top of the ACC with a conference record of 19-1, and an overall record of 29-3.

This would place the Blue Devils in the first seed of the ACC Tournament, which would pit them against Georgia Tech in the first round.

The match wouldn't be one to remember for Flagg due to a few reasons, the first being his lackluster performance, only managing to drain one of his seven shots from the floor, ending the match with two points and four rebounds.

Cooper Flagg was legitimately 5 ft off The ground and rolled his ankle he might be cooked for the rest of the ACC tournament even if Duke wins today pic.twitter.com/73nGxi2MhK
— John (@iam_johnw) March 13, 2025

But perhaps the bigger reason would be the injury he suffered in the tail end of the first half, which was due to rolling on his ankle after coming up with a defensive rebound.

In the moments following Flagg would be helped up by his teammates and limped his way off of the court, before being seen in a wheelchair headed for the Blue Devils' locker room. While the 18-year-old made his way back to Duke's bench, he wouldn't return in the match, watching the Blue Devils squeak out a 78-70 win over Georgia Tech.

If any scouts from the Nets were watching the match as a way of getting more footage of their potential draft target, it may be the last they'll get from the ACC Tournament, as Duke head coach Jon Scheyer feels that Flagg's immediate return is unlikely.

"He probably won't be able to go anyway," said Scheyer. "But I think it's a real long shot, a real long shot."

With the official NCAA tournament still a few days away, it will allow Duke's medical team to work on Flagg with the hopes of getting him back on the court. But the Blue Devils' victory on Thursday afternoon would allow another potential draft target for the Nets to shine, Kon Knueppel.

Knueppel would lead the way for Duke, dropping 28 points on 50 percent shooting from the field, while dishing out eight assists across his 38 minute stint on the court.

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