On3’s Jamie Shaw saw a dominant offensive performance from No. 1 overall 2024 recruit Cooper Flagg during a preseason exhibition between Arizona State and Duke, where the Blue Devils won 103-47 at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Shaw also noted that Flagg is behind defensively; to the point where he may be off the floor for extended minutes if the problem isn’t fixed.
Flagg was described as “a step slow,” and because of that, “handsy.” He ended up with five fouls in under 21 minutes of action.
“Fr. F Cooper Flagg (Duke) plays a simple, well-rounded game,” Shaw wrote. “The ball does not stick with him and he is ready to make a winning-type play. Tonight, Flagg came out early aggressively looking to score. The 6-foot-7 forward knocked down a nice catch-and-shoot jumper off movement and he had a tough and-1 play in the first couple of minutes. Flagg moves the ball well and he made some nice freelance plays on defense, although he was a step slow at times guarding on ball forcing him to get a little handsy (5 fouls). In 20:36 played he finished with 9 points (3-9 FG), 4 rebounds, and 3 assists.”
Cooper Flagg was not the ‘story of the night’ during Duke vs ASU basketball scrimmage
Flagg’s defensive woes were too unnerving for Blue Devil fans to focus on. Instead, Shaw deemed fellow freshman Kon Knueppel the “story of the night” for his hot shooting night in the second half. Knueppel hit five of his six shot attempts and four of his five 3-point attempts.
College basketball is a team sport. Even programs with top NBA draft picks throughout the years – think 2011-12 Kentucky with Anthony Davis or 2010-11 UConn with Kemba Walker – had other pro talents on the same team. It’s likely Cooper is playing with several NBA talents, so he won’t have to carry the load every game. Or even the majority of nights.
But many are expecting Flagg to be a one-man show in Durham. It’s clear that until Flagg corrects his defensive shortcomings, he might not see the court enough to be the domineering force that singlehandedly powers Duke this season.
