As expected, the Dallas Mavericks select Cooper Flagg with top pick while Dylan Harper joins Victor Wembanyama at San Antonio Spurs.
Cooper Flagg anticipated the moment for many months.
Still, when the Duke product heard his name called Wednesday at No 1 overall in the NBA draft by the Dallas Mavericks, he experienced a flurry of emotions.
“I’m feeling amazing,” Flagg said as he stood with his family. “It’s a dream come true, to be honest. I wouldn’t want to share it with anybody else.”
The Mavericks’ announcement ended a months-long buildup for the 18-year-old Maine native, who had long been projected as the top pick. The only question was which team would get a chance to take him, and Dallas earned that opportunity when it won the NBA Draft lottery last month despite 1.8 percent odds.
Flagg figures to quickly provide a new face of the franchise for the Mavericks, who drew ire from their fan base after trading Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers last season.
The 6-foot-8-inch (2.03m), 221-pound (100kg) Flagg helped guide Duke to an NCAA Final Four appearance after averaging 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.4 blocks as a freshman. He won the Wooden Award as the nation’s best player, along with taking home other honours including Atlantic Coast Conference Rookie of the Year and an ACC All-Defensive Team nod.
The San Antonio Spurs followed with the No 2 pick, which they used to select Rutgers guard Dylan Harper. The son of longtime NBA player Ron Harper will join a talented roster that includes prized big man Victor Wembanyama and reigning Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle.
Harper said he could not wait to get to San Antonio to prepare for the season.
“I’m feeling everything – all the emotions mixed in one bucket,” Harper said. “I think when you play with a bunch of great players, it brings the best out of you. They’ve got a great young core over there. I’m just ready to get in there and make an impact any way I can with those guys.”
At No 3, the Philadelphia 76ers selected guard VJ Edgecombe out of Baylor. He was named Big 12 Freshman of the Year after averaging 15 points and 5.6 rebounds for the Bears.
The Charlotte Hornets selected Duke guard Kon Knueppel next, which marked the second Blue Devils freshman to be selected in the top four picks. Now, Knueppel will stay in North Carolina to play in the NBA.
“It was a big spotlight at Duke,” he said. “(We) freshmen didn’t shy away from that, and it prepared us for the next level. Hopefully, that will carry over.”
The Utah Jazz selected Ace Bailey, who played with Harper at Rutgers, to round out the top five picks.
Flagg’s Duke teammate, centre Khaman Maluach, heard his name called at No 10 overall. The pick belonged to the Houston Rockets, who then sent the draft rights to Maluach to the Phoenix Suns as part of a deal to be finalised for Kevin Durant.
Maluach was born in South Sudan and did not discover basketball until he was an adolescent.
“I’m here representing the whole continent,” Maluach said. “Leaving Africa, I had the whole continent on my back. (I want to be) giving hope to young kids, inspiring young kids and the next generation of African basketball.”
The Mavericks had the No 1 overall pick for the second time in franchise history. They also had the top selection in 1981, when they drafted Mark Aguirre out of DePaul.
