Live Scouting Duke Signee Cooper Flagg at the Hoophall Classic

Cooper Flagg is currently the main draw in high school basketball. He has sold out his last two venues. Going on the road to sell out The Maine Event and then the Hoophall Classic the following week. His games are being picked up by the NBA app and ESPN as the Duke signee is being broadcast to a wide audience. 

The mixtapes and the videographers show you all the ‘wow’ plays that Flagg makes throughout the course of a game. The 6-foot-8 forward is one of the best defensive prospects I have scouted in my decade-plus in the industry. The game-changing defense was a large reason why we moved Flagg to No. 1 in the 2025 class before him re-classifying into the 2024 class and taking over the No. 1 position in the 2024 On3 150. 

This past week I was in Springfield, Massachusetts for two of Montverde (FL) Academy’s three games at the Hoophall Classic. In the game against Wolfeboro (NH) Brewster Academy, Flagg finished with 11 points, five rebounds, two assists, two steals, and two blocks. In the game against Napa (CA) Prolific Prep, he had 15 points, ten rebounds, two assists, two steals, and five blocks. 

If you’re reading this article, I’m sure many of you have already seen the highlights. One game was shown on the NBA app and the other on ESPN 2, as well. But I wanted to take a deep dive into what I saw, and how I saw it. 

Let’s discuss Cooper Flagg’s two games I watched at the Hoophall Classic.

The Defensive Instincts are Unmatched

Dating back to July of 2022, the summer between Cooper Flagg’s freshman and sophomore seasons, when I called him the best prospect in high school basketball his defensive instincts were an outlier. 

At that point., Flagg was coming off a gold-medal-winning performance with the USA Basketball U17 team, as a 15-year-old. It was in that event that Flagg led the team in rebounds, steals, and blocks. In the championship game alone, against Spain, Flagg finished with 10 points, 17 rebounds, eight steals, and four blocks. 

Watching that performance tipped me off that we were dealing with something special. And Flagg continued down that path, showcasing incredible defensive prowess at every stop. Last season, as a sophomore starter for top-five ranked Montverde (FL) Academy, Flagg led the team in steals (1.6) and blocks (2.2). That team had 11 players with Division 1 scholarships, nine of whom will ultimately sign with high-major programs. 

This weekend, Flagg finished with four total steals and seven total blocks in the two games I watched. What sticks out the most with his defense is his instincts. He always seems to be in the right place. Even if he gets beat in the half-court, he takes the correct pursuit angle to make a play on the ball at the rim.

At 6-foot-8, Flagg has good length and he has quick-twitch athleticism. Each of these physical traits helps him on the defensive end of the floor. The size allows him to have versatility, able to guard up and down a line-up. However, when Flagg is at his best, at least at this level, is when he is given the ability to roam. Not guarding any specific player, but taking an off-the-ball role and cleaning up messes from the back side. 

I am a sucker for defensive versatility. A player who can fluidly guard multiple positions on the court, while continuing to make plays.

Another aspect of Flagg’s defensive ability that stands out is his competitiveness. He seems to want to shut the opposition down. Even with a lot of his production coming in an off-ball, roaming manner, he takes each possession personally. 

Flagg’s Motor Runs Hot

Cooper Flagg is currently the No. 1 ranked player across all major recruiting service platforms. In each game that he plays, the crowd is standing room only and the video cameras align the baselines. Not only is he getting pulled and tugged in every direction, by media and fans alike, but there are also kids wearing Flagg t-shirts and jerseys and adults asking for autographs. 

With all the celebrity status that his basketball game has brought the 17-year-old, Flagg still plays every game with an intensity. There is a passion there, a switch that he visibly turns off each time he steps on the floor. Able to tune out all of the lights and the crowds and just play. 

Flagg brings a fire to each possession, of each game. No matter the situation or the circumstance, he has always competed.

What is Cooper Flagg’s Offensive Archetype?

While on the defensive end of the floor, Cooper Flagg is a standout, one-of-one currently in the high school game. On the offensive end, there is more outcome variance. At this current stage, Flagg is mostly a connector. With the ball in his hands, his best attribute is his passing. 

Flagg is a quick processor with the ball and can be a versatile asset with his ability to make a read and deliver a strike. He is comfortable as an initiator in the pick-and-roll delivering on-target and on time in traffic. 

Flagg is also an excellent off-ball cutter. He has good instincts playing in the dunker spot or flashing to soft spots in the defense for quick pull-up jump shots. He gets a good number of his points from turning defense into offense. As I talked about above, he plays every possession with a purpose, and this goes for transition as well. He fills the lanes hard and gets to the front of the rim quickly. 

Flagg is developing as a jump shooter. He has raised the release on his shot, which he knocks down with consistency off the catch. The load on the shot is more concise and gets him from catch to release quicker. Flagg plays with a lot of good passers on this Montverde team which gets him a lot of clean looks throughout the course of a game.

Flagg’s shooting, while improved, still has some steps needed to be taken. Especially when he is shooting off movement, most notably going left. Flagg’s release is high and to the right side of his head. When he is going left, getting the ball to his release point can get a little clunky and knock off alignment. While still more consistent off the catch, the shot load to get set is not as pronounced when he is looking to shoot off movement to the right. 

Flagg will need to continue working on his handle. Currently, he is a secondary scorer, at his best when others are creating space and opportunities for him. A few times in the Prolific Prep game Flagg got into trouble dribbling into traffic. While Flagg can straight-line drive past his initial defender off close outs and ball reversals, when the second and third defenders get involved, things can be tricky. At this current stage, with a set defense, he does not put much pressure on the rim with the ball in his hands. 

In the two games I watched of Flagg this weekend, he finished 4-8 from the field and 1-1 from three in a 33-point win over Wolfeboro (NH) Brewster Academy. And he was 6-15 from the field and 2-6 from three in the five-point win over Napa (CA) Prolific Prep. In total, that combines for 10-23 (43.5 percent) from the field and 3-7 (42.9 percent) from three.

While Flagg does not need an entire bag to pull from, he does need to find his most dangerous spots on the floor and then work on his handle/movements to efficiently get to those spots. This will be helped organically by the spacing he will find as he continues to progress to each level. But, self-creation on the offensive end and continuing to work on the jump shot release are next steps for Flagg’s development.

Cooper Flagg in Summary

Cooper Flagg’s floor at the highest level is considerable because of the many ways he affects the game in positive ways. The physical traits Flagg brings to the table will play in today’s game. A lengthy, 6-foot-8 wing with quick-twitch athleticism and instincts is what the highest levels of modern basketball are built around.  

His defense is uniquely special at this point. While capable of guarding on ball, his instincts off the ball will translate to the highest levels of basketball. Flagg is a quick processor with the ball in his hands and has passing touch with both hands, at each level of the court. There are some initiation pieces with Flagg that will be interesting to explore and that coupled with his ability to guard threes and fours is very intriguing. 

With Flagg, there are quite a few potential archetype outcomes. The swing skills for him moving forward will be the self-creation and the shooting. Will he be able to develop from a secondary, connecting offensive piece to a primary offensive threat?

Flagg has a mid-December birthday which makes him eligible for the 2025 NBA Draft. That birthday will also make him one of the youngest players in college basketball at Duke next season. While his process was sped up when he re-classified up to the 2025 class, he is still young with a lot of time for natural physical and developmental growth. 

For On3. Flagg was the No. 1 player as a member of the 2025 class. He moved to the No. 1 spot in the 2024 class when he re-classified. And Flagg is currently the No. 1 player in the 2024 class, across the board.