A trip to the golf course might be on tap. The fairways, bunkers and putting greens are an oasis for Cooper Flagg when challenging decisions have to be made. Boy, the No. 1 player in the country has a tough one.
The basketball world is waiting on Flagg, and he knows it.
It’s UConn or Duke. Maybe this is a recruiting battle that will also double as a National Championship date on that second Monday in April.
Visits have been made. Flagg’s tight-knit family has done its research. The schmoozing is done. Negative recruiting is in full force. Spotless edits for both sides have been crafted. The stories are pre-written and in the holster.
A decision is all that remains.
“He can’t go wrong either way,” one source close to Flagg told 247Sports.
Ain’t that the truth.
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Until then, Duke and UConn will bury themselves in busywork. Both enter 2023-24 with championship expectations. UConn coach Dan Hurley is looking to defend his crown, and Jon Scheyer is trying to get Duke back to the top of the mountain.
Scheyer is busy revamping how Duke will play this winter. A now-healthy Kyle Filipowski will play more at the 5, and Duke is integrating five-star freshman guards like Caleb Foster and Jared McCain into an already-loaded Duke backcourt that already features Jeremy Roach and popular breakout candidate Tyrese Proctor.
Duke has five-star prospects out the wazoo on this roster. Six to be exact. NBA executives will be watching Duke closely all year, but Duke doesn’t have the most NBA talent in the country.
UConn does.
Donovan Clingan and Stephon Castle are potential lottery picks in the 2024 NBA Draft. Seven total Huskies made The Draftables, a fearless project honing in on every single NBA Draft prospect in college basketball, engineered by 247Sports’ director of scouting Adam Finkelstein.
Now, throw Flagg in the mix. The NBA’s band of mighty spies might just plop up a tent outside Storrs or Cameron Indoor after Flagg picks his lane.
The beauty of Flagg is that he can, genuinely, play with anybody in the country. The impact of Flagg to Duke or UConn would be enormous.
“People associate UConn with getting good recruits but they haven’t put them in the conversation recently with Duke, Kentucky, Kansas and North Carolina for getting the best of the best,” 247Sports’ national basketball director Eric Bossi said. “If they get Flagg after getting Stephon Castle, they have to be considered in that class of the elite recruiters.”
But the domino effect is largely non-existent. Duke and UConn don’t have a backup target that can do the feats Flagg makes look oh-so-easy. It’s Flagg or nothing.
“He’s the biggest recruiting cherry on top of a sundae in history,” Bossi said. “He either goes or he doesn’t.”
That doesn’t mean undecided recruits aren’t watching Flagg’s decision closely. Coveted big man Patrick Ngongba II ranks No. 20 in the Class of 2024, and Kentucky, Michigan and Kansas State have pushed hard for his services. Kansas State, especially, has put the full-court press privately, publicly and everywhere in between for Ngongba’s services. But, like Flagg, he has Duke and UConn among his finalists.
There’s a spot for Ngongba at UConn or Duke even if Flagg hops on board, and the fit between the two emerging big men would be flawless. But Flagg’s decision is expected before Ngonbga who is still taking official visits.
“Cooper is the more compelling player and the better player and probably makes the bigger impact, but in terms of building a balanced roster, Patrick might be more important,” Bossi said. “He’s big. He keeps getting better. He’s a guy who wasn’t in the greatest shape a few years ago. He could rebound and take up space. Now, he’s got an offensive game. He’s a rim protector, he’s in much better shape, he’s improved offensively. Right now, a center is a bigger need than either of those programs than a combo forward. I’m not downplaying the impact of Cooper Flagg. We know how special Cooper is, but Duke has a plethora of wings and forwards. They don’t have the big guy. UConn doesn’t have a Donovan Clingan replacement.”
DUKE 2024-25 ROSTER LOOKAHEAD
Out of eligibility: Ryan Young
TBD: Jeremy Roach, Jaylen Blakes, Kyle Filipowski, Jaden Schutt, Mark Mitchell Jr., Christian Reeves, Tyrese Proctor, Jared McCain, Caleb Foster, Sean Stewart, TJ Power
Incoming (as of now): Isaiah Evans (five-star, No. 11 nationally), Kon Knueppel (five-star, No. 16 nationally), Darren Harris (four-star, No. 56 nationally)
UCONN 2024-25 ROSTER LOOKAHEAD
Out of eligibility: Tristen Newton, Cam Spencer
TBD: Samson Johnson, Hassan Diarra, Donovan Clingan, Alex Karaban, Apostolos Roumoglou, Solomon Ball, Stephon Castle, Jayden Ross, Jaylin Stewart, Youssouf Singare
Incoming (as of now): Ahmad Nowell (four-star, No. 37 nationally), Isaiah Abraham (four-star, No. 73 nationally)
Who will stay or go next year if Flagg hops on board at UConn or Duke is noisy, fun and probably a pointless exercise.
RELATED: Burning questions for Duke and UConn if Cooper Flagg hops on board
If Duke and UConn have the seasons they expect, their rosters will look far different in eight months. It isn’t crazy that Clingan, Castle, Filipowski, Mitchell and Proctor could all hear their names called in the first round of the NBA Draft next June. Maybe Duke and UConn combine for as many as seven picks.
“They don’t care about Cooper Flagg, they care about their draft statuses,” Bossi said. “If Caleb Foster is a first-round pick, he’s not going to stick around because he’d get to play with Cooper Flagg.”
Andy Bedard coaches Flagg’s Maine United AAU team. He’s a tight family friend who has been involved in Flagg’s life from way back in third grade. Bedard told 247Sports in July that Flagg would run the point on this recruitment. That has stayed consistent all the way up to decision-makin’ time. It’s why Kansas was removed from the equation. It’s why Duke or UConn are the finalists.
The ball is in his court. And now, we wait.