Cooper Flagg is expected to be selected by the Dallas Mavericks with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft on June 25.
The Mavericks secured the top selection in the draft lottery in May and are positioned to add Flagg, a forward coming off an outstanding freshman season at Duke.
Flagg averaged 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists in his one-and-done season with the Blue Devils, winning AP Player of the Year and sweeping the voting for the ACC Player and Rookie of the Year awards.
He also led Duke to a Final Four appearance in the NCAA Tournament.
Duke Blue Devils forward Cooper Flagg (2) reacts after making a last-second shot to end the first half against the Arizona Wildcats.
Duke Blue Devils forward Cooper Flagg (2) reacts after making a last-second shot to end the first half against the Arizona Wildcats.
Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images
On Tuesday, Cooper Flagg’s mother, Kelly Flagg, engaged with a social media post about her son’s future with Dallas.
The post featured a mixtape of Flagg’s college highlights and was captioned, “Day one posting a video of Cooper Flagg until he wins a title with the Dallas Mavericks.”
Kelly Flagg liked the post, drawing the attention of the Mavericks fan who originally shared it.
The fan capped off his reaction to Kelly Flagg's like by writing, "Our future is bright with our new generational star."
Next week, Flagg is set to be the second No. 1 overall pick in Mavericks franchise history, joining Mark Aguirre, the top pick in 1981. It's the first time Dallas has picked in the top five since 2018 when it traded up for Luka Doncic.
After a midseason trade that sent Doncic to the Lakers and ultimately led to a missed playoff appearance, Dallas fans are once again seeing light at the end of the tunnel.