Cooper Flagg Hyped as 'Hell of a Player' by Former Duke Star Paolo Banchero

Orlando Magic star and former Duke forward Paolo Banchero has been impressed with current Blue Devils freshman Cooper Flagg.

"[Duke freshman forward] Cooper [Flagg], he's a hell of a player," Banchero told Andscape's Marc J. Spears. "From what I watched this year, obviously, I watched the Kentucky game. I watched one other game. They got a hell of a team. A lot of guys that can go. And he just does a good job of playing to win and not worrying about what his numbers look like or how many shots he gets."

While his perimeter shooting has been inconsistent, Flagg has mostly lived up to expectations throughout the first four games of his freshman season at Duke.

He's averaging 16.3 points, 9.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.8 blocks per game on 44.2/22.2/78.9 shooting splits.

Flagg's ability to initiate the Blue Devils' offense as well as his defensive acumen have already resulted in NBA draft conversations, with Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman projecting the 17-year-old to be selected with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 draft during his latest mock.

Banchero can uniquely relate to Flagg's situation, as he also made a strong impression in his lone year at Duke. During the 2021-22 season, he averaged 17.2 points per game and earned ACC Rookie of the Year honors before Orlando added him with the No. 1 pick in the 2022 draft.

Flagg's strong start to his college career has helped the Blue Devils open the year with a 3-1 record as well as the No. 12 spot in the latest Associated Press top 25 poll.