Cooper Flagg is one of the most coveted prospects of the 2025 recruiting class. Currently ranked as the #2 player in the class by ESPN, everyone wants the 6'8, 200lb forward who is widely considered the best rim defender currently playing at the high school level. Flagg, at the time of writing, has 11 collegiate offers, including Duke. He is currently playing out of the Montverde Academy in Florida.
However, if currently circulating rumors are to be believed, Flagg recently got into with an established NBA star. According to Sean Deveney of Heavy, Flagg recently attended a basketball camp hosted by Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics. Additionally, Helping with the camp was Bradley Beal of the Phoenix Suns, who is a good friend of Tatum's. Furthermore, if Deveney's reporting is correct, Beal and Flagg really got into it at the camp.
Beal And Flagg Reportedly Get Heated
“I heard a rumor that my boy Cooper Flagg was at Jayson Tatum’s camp and he was busting Brad Beal 1-on-1, and Brad Beal got mad at him. Started cussing him out,” Scalabrine said. “This dude is a major trash-talker. … So I guess the rumor is that Brad Beal and him were squaring off 1-on-1 and Brad Beal was taking it lightly. It’s a high school kid. Then Cooper started giving it to him. And I guess the rumor is, Cooper started talking trash and Bradley Beal got mad. Really mad," said Brian Scalabrine, a former NBA player who has worked with Flagg as a private trainer. While the story should be taken with a grain of salt, it goes to show the legend that Flagg is building for himself.
As mentioned, Flagg is currently the #2 player in the Class of 2025. However, as one NBA scout put it, “He will be the No. 1 pick,” one scout told Heavy Sports. “It is just a matter of what year he comes in. But even if he were to get hurt or something, he’d probably be No. 1 still.” Despite the competition for that first-choice status, Flagg could make it a moot point if he reclassifies to the Class of 2024, as many expect him to do. That would mean he would be eligible for the NBA Draft in 2025, where his biggest competition to go first overall would be Tre Johnson or Airious Bailey.
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