No. 1-seeded Duke Blue Devils gets their star back on the field to the start of the NCAA tournament.
Cooper Flagg has no damage designation and will be active for Duke against No. 16 Mount St. Mary’s in the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina, Friday.
Flagg, the expected No. 1 selection of the 2025 NBA draft, has been out for Blue Devils since the ACC quarterfinals, where he suffered an ankle injury against Georgia Tech.
CLICK HERE for more sports cover at Foxnews.com
Duke Blue Devils Forward Cooper Flagg goes to the bench during the first half against North Carolina Tar Heels at the Spectrum Center. (Jim Dedmon-Preferred Pictures)
But Flagg tells the New York Post on Thursday that he is “really sure to go 100%” in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
“I had an MRI x-ray, both of them looked really good. So from then it was just moving on, pain tolerance type of thing, just get the improvement and treatment that I needed.”
Duke Great Seth Curry Roses Cooper Flagg in front of NCAA Touranment: ‘Wise Beyond his years’
Flagg added that he again built his ankle by “jumping back into practice” as well as individual training on the site. He had a full practice Wednesday, which ultimately confirmed he is ready to go.
This is where the damage was on a tendency to flag, but when it originally happened, Blue Devils fans kept their collective breath as their national title hope would have had a big impact if he couldn’t play in the tournament.
Duke Blue Devils Forward Cooper Flagg responds in the second half at the Dean E. Smith Center. (Bob Donnan-Preferred Pictures)
However, Duke was still able to win the ACC Tournament, which included the absence of starting Maliq Brown, still has to do with a staggered shoulder.
Head coach Jon Scheyer also noted that Flagg would play in the ACC title game, but Duke decided to keep him out. Now that he has seen his star student in practice, Scheyer explained that his return to play was about being able to move properly. “
“He wouldn’t play if he compensated,” Scheyer explained on Thursday according to the post. “Look, no matter what (with) an ankle sprain … to say he is 100% tomorrow, he has to work through it a little still. But he does not compensate.
“We built him up slowly and really moved on to him the right way, but he’s ready to go.”
Duke Blue Devils Guard Cooper Flagg before the game against Syracuse Orange at JMA Wireless Dome. (RICH BARNES-PREPARED PICTURES)
Flagg was a consensus All-American during the 2024-25 campaign as well as the current favorite to win the player of the year by average 18.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 1.5 stealing and 1.3 blocks per year. Match.
Flagg is the team leader in each of these categories.
