There is some concern about the health and status of Duke Blue Devils star freshman Cooper Flagg after the 2024-25 ACC Player of the Year suffered an injury in the first half of Thursday’s ACC Tournament game against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.
Flagg hurt his left ankle after getting a rebound, forcing him to miss the rest of the contest. Despite Flagg’s injury, Duke overcame a five-point halftime deficit by outscoring Georgia Tech in the second half by 13 points to pull off a 78-70 victory.
The No. 1 seed Duke has a short turnaround before its next game, as the Blue Devils are scheduled to face No. 5 seed and fierce rivals North Carolina Tar Heels this Friday evening at Spectrum Center in Charlotte.
With or without Flagg for Duke, Georgia Tech head coach and former NBA Rookie of the Year Damon Stoudamire seemingly believes that the Blue Devils are still talented and deep enough to continue having success, per Kevin Holden of CBS 17.
Duke head coach Jon Scheyer said following the Georgia Tech game that it’s a “real long shot” for Flagg to play against the Tar Heels in the semifinals of the ACC Tournament, per the Associated Press (h/t ESPN).
The likes of Kon Knueppel, Tyrese Proctor and Sion James can expect higher usages in the absence of Flagg, who left the Yellow Jacket game with just two points, four rebounds, two steals and a block in 15 minutes.