Everyone Is Saying The Same Thing About Cooper Flagg After Dismal Performance vs. Unranked Team
The No. 4 Duke Blue Devils collected their eighth win of the season on Tuesday night, as they took care of business at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, North Carolina, by beating the Incarnate Word Cardinals, 72-46.
However, star freshman Cooper Flagg didn't contribute much from an offensive standpoint in the contest. Flagg finished with just six points on a salty 2-for-8 shooting from the floor while missing all three of his attempts from behind the arc.
It was clearly not the type of performance people expect to see from someone widely projected to be the top pick overall in the 2025 NBA draft, especially against a lowly opponent at home. (Incarnate Word is ranked just 286th in the nation on KenPom.)
Duke forward Cooper Flagg controls the ball in front of Incarnate Word forward Dylan Hayman.
Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images
However, many fans don’t seem to believe that Flagg’s off night versus the Cardinals hurt his NBA stock.
"He’s been playing great one bad game ain’t moving the projections," said a fan.
From another X user: “He’s not falling anywhere. The kid didn’t play half the 2nd cause he didn’t need to. Let the other guys have some minutes.”
“Still taking him first pick. What player doesnt have a bad game?” chimed in a commenter.
“lol nothing he does in college matters. He still going #1,” another comment read.
“He’s an all-around player. Doesn’t need to score to impact the game. Should still be #1,” opined another fan.
It should also be noted that Flagg did not have a field goal attempt in the second half. He played just 22 minutes as Duke relied a lot on its bench against the overmatched Cardinals.
If there were any fears about Flagg's draft stock after the Incarnate Word game, he has the chance to extinguish them in Duke's next game. The Blue Devils (8-2) will host the George Mason Patriots at 7 p.m. ET Tuesday on ACC Network.
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