Duke's Cooper Flagg Wins 2025 Wooden Award over Johni Broome, Walter Clayton Jr., More

Duke forward Cooper Flagg won the 2025 Wooden Award, which is presented annually to the best college basketball player in the country.

Flagg earned the honor over four other finalists, including Auburn forward Johni Broome, Florida guard Walter Clayton Jr., Alabama guard Mark Sears and Purdue guard Braden Smith.

The 18-year-old joined Kevin Durant, Zion Williamson and Anthony Davis as the only freshmen to ever win the award.

Williamson was the last freshman to win the Wooden Award in 2019.

Flagg entered his first season at Duke with lofty expectations, as he was listed as the No. 1 prospect in the country as part of the 2024 recruiting class (via 247Sports' composite rankings).

His freshman year with the Blue Devils has been impressive, averaging 18.9 points and 7.5 rebounds to go along with 4.2 assists per game. Flagg has shown promise as a three-level scorer, shooting 48.3 percent from the field and connecting on 37.4 percent of his three-point attempts.

He's also made his presence felt on defense, recording 1.4 steals and 1.3 blocks per game.

Flagg previously earned ACC Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year honors, helping lead Duke to a 35-3 record as well as an appearance in the Final Four of the 2025 NCAA tournament.

He's stepped up throughout the Blue Devils' March Madness run, averaging 19.5 points and 7.8 rebounds while shooting 42.9 percent from behind the arc in four tournament games.

Flagg shouldn't have to wait long to hear his name called in the 2025 NBA draft, as he was projected to be selected with the No. 1 overall pick in the latest mock draft from Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman.

For now, Flagg will focus on attempting to take down Houston in the Final Four on Saturday after winning the Wooden Award.