Myron Medcalf
The Duke Star Cooper Flag, who suffered an ankle injury during the ACC tournament, will be available for the NCAA Tournament, according to Dan Gabit, senior vice president of men’s basketball at the NCAA.
Gavitt responded to questions about Seth Davis could affect team seed on Sunday during CBS broadcast on Saturday, and both the school and the league told the Select Committee that ACC Player of the Year Flagg is ready to go to the NCAA Tournament.
“What we understand from the communications between Duke and the ACC is that Cooper Flag will be available for NCAA tournaments, so don’t expect it to affect the seeds,” Gavitt says. “He’s not a serious injury. He’s tracking other injuries from other teams. Player availability has always been a concern and can potentially affect seeds.
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The No. 1 pick predicted in the 2025 NBA Draft and the wooden award-winning favourite, Flagg snuck in his left ankle and had to be carried off the court during the team’s 78-70 victory over Georgia Tech in Thursday’s ACC Tournament Quarter Finals. The x-ray was negative, but he was removed from Friday’s victory over 74-71 rival North Carolina.
Another key player on the Duke roster, Malik Brown suffered a shoulder injury in the ACC tournament, which could also affect NCAA Tournament status. Coach John Shayer said injuries could keep Brown out for a long time.
However, during Friday’s UNC victory, Flag played the role of cheerleader on the sidelines as his team fought against North Carolina and played against North Carolina as his team won the third game of the season after a lane violation by North Carolina Jerine Wizards sealed the victory in the final seconds.
Along with Flag, Duke produced one of the best resumes in the country. The Blue Devils defeated Arizona and Auburn in the non-conference season before finishing 19-1 to win the ACC regular season title.
However, Flagg’s injury seemed to complicate the national championship aspirations for the team that Tyus Jones won the most outstanding player honors a decade ago to help Tyus Jones win Mike Krzyzewski’s final national title.
After winning the Tar Heel on Friday, Shayer said the team is working to prepare for the NCAA tournament.
“As long as (flagg) goes, he’s getting better,” Shayer said. “Ankle sprain. All the imaging has returned to negative. He has made it a pretty good sprain. It’s a good sprain. I’m not breaking the news. He’s not going to play (in the ACC title game). He can’t play. But our goal is not ready for the NCAA tournament.
