The college basketball world got some huge news with top Class of 2024 recruit Cooper Flagg choosing Duke basketball over UConn on Monday. Flagg's decision to play at Duke had Blue Devils fans excited with the addition, and spurning the defending national champions must've been a tough decision.

The recruitment of Flagg has been a massive talking point all summer long, especially after he made headlines in a number of off-season circuits. But, some might not be too familiar with the name. Some might ask, who is Duke's newest superstar recruit? Let's take a dive into Cooper Flagg.

Cooper Flagg's background 

Flagg is 16 years old and grew up in Newport, Maine. Both of his parents played basketball at some point during their lives, so it's in his blood. His father, Ralph, played at Eastern Maine Community College and his mother, Kelly, played college ball at Maine and was team captain as a senior. On top of that, Cooper Flagg has a twin brother named Ace and an older brother named Hunter, both of whom are basketball players. Ace currently plays at Montverde Academy with Cooper, and Hunter was on the same team as a senior during Cooper's first year of high school.

Maine has been in Maine his whole childhood, and he took to social media after the tragic shootings in Lewiston recently.

High school career 

Flagg began his high school career at Nokomis Regional High School in Maine and was named the Maine Gatorade Player of the Year as a freshman. In his first year of high school, he led his team to a Class A state title and averaged 20.5 points, 10.0 rebounds, 6.2 assists, 3.7 steals, and 3.7 blocks.

In the state title game against Falmouth, Flagg was dominant, dropping 22 points with 16 rebounds to win the title.

After his first year at Nokomis, Flagg decided to transfer to Montverde Academy in Florida. He finished his first season at Montverde averaging 9.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 3.0 assists and was in turn named as a semifinalist for the Naismith Prep Player of the Year Award.

In Montverde's opener of the 2023-2024 season, Flagg was everywhere in the victory over Bishop O'Connell. He finished the game with 20 points, nine boards, four assists, and three blocks.

It's also worth noting that Flagg's Montverde teammate, Asa Newell, recently committed to Georgia basketball in a huge get for the Bulldogs. As always, Montverde is loaded with talent on the roster.

Flagg was also part of the United States U-17 National Team at the 2022 FIBA Under-17 Basketball World Cup. Team USA won the gold medal, and Flagg was named to the All-Tournament team after averaging 9.3 points, 10 rebounds, 2.9 blocked shots, and 2.4 steals. In the gold medal game against Spain, Flagg had 10 points with 17 rebounds, eight steals, and four blocked shots.

Cooper Flagg's Peach Jam explosion 

Flagg went under the radar from a national perspective for quite some time. However, the summer of 2023 really put Flagg on the big map, and it all began with his performance at Peach Jam. As the star for Maine United at Peach Jam, Flagg posted eye-popping numbers through seven games, averaging 25.4 points, 13.0 rebounds, 6.9 blocks and 5.7 assists as his team was the runner-up.

There are so many Peach Jam outbursts to examine, but perhaps the best came against Pro Skills, where he dropped 38 points with 16 rebounds, 11 blocks, and six assists.

Maine United would end up losing in the Peach Jam Final to Nightrydas, but Flagg's performance at the tournament sent his college offers through the roof. Prior to that outing at Peach Jam, Flagg had earned MVP honors at the National Basketball Players Association Top 100 Camp in Orlando, Florida.

College recruitment 

Cooper Flagg was originally slated to be in the Class of 2025 and was the third-ranked prospect in the class following his freshman season at Nokomis. However, he decided to reclassify to the Class of 2024, and suddenly became the top-ranked prospect, especially after the way he performed at Peach Jam.

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Cooper Flagg drew plenty of college interest and held offers from all of UConn, Duke, Iowa, Kansas, Kansas State, Michigan, Providence, Texas, UCF, UCLA, Villanova and West Virginia. Flagg then narrowed down his choices to UConn and Duke after canceling his Kansas visit, and Duke basketball head coach Jon Scheyer made all-out efforts to land Flagg.

On Monday, October 30, Flagg announced his decision to play for Duke while on the cover of SLAM Magazine and told SLAM the reason why he chose Duke:

“After I got on campus, I really started to envision myself in Durham. All the love I felt made me really excited, seeing all the Crazies and the atmosphere in Cameron. I'm honored that I have the opportunity to join the brotherhood.”

Cooper Flagg's NBA profile 

Cooper Flagg

It's never too early to discuss NBA profiles, especially for somebody as talented as Flagg. At the Peach Jam, NBA scouts and hoops analysts of all kinds were already raving about Flagg's talent, and it will only increase with his final season at Montverde before heading to play for Duke.

Here's what one NBA scout told ESPN over the summer, per Jeff Borzello of ESPN.

“Flagg is just different. He has the mental makeup. He's consistent with his mindset, motor and production… Just the progressions that he's shown with the live-ball playmaking, shot-creating off the bounce, instinctive reads and plays on both ends and then how he carries himself … he has a chance to be a transformational basketball player in the sport as a whole.”

Flagg is already pegged as the top pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, and he won't turn 18 until December of his freshman year at Duke.