Former Duke basketball freshman sensation Cooper Flagg is set to become the NBA's next young star after being selected with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks. Sportsbooks seem to be all in on Flagg, as he is the heavy favorite to take home the 2025 Rookie of the Year award with -190 odds.
NBA Rookie of the Year odds per FanDuel:
Cooper Flagg: -190
Ace Bailey: +850
Tre Johnson: +850
Dylan Harper: +1200
VJ Edgecombe: +2500
The other Blue Devil rookies taken in the top ten in this draft, Kon Knueppel (No. 4 overall to Charlotte), and Khaman Maluach (No. 10 overall to Phoenix) are long shots to win the award according to the betting markets. Knueppel sits with +3500 odds to win, and Maluach is set at +10000 odds. These could be two sleeper plays.
As for Flagg, he's entering an extremely intriguing situation with Dallas, as the Mavericks are a team built to win right now, with serious playoff aspirations next season. Although Kyrie Irving will miss a large chunk of the 2025-26 season after suffering a torn ACL, the Mavs still have a ton of depth and talent. Flagg will be joining a frontcourt alongside Anthony Davis, Dereck Lively II, Daniel Gafford, and PJ Washington. The Maine native could also see some time at the guard positions in Irving's absence, with Flagg's point forward build and skillset.
What could hinder Flagg from winning the Rookie of the Year award is the fact that his volume may not be as high as he'd need to put up numbers good enough to win it. All of the other rookies towards the top of the ROTY list are on young, rebuilding teams where these incoming top rookies will have the green light to take on a huge load offensively early. For Flagg, that likely won't be the case.
The Mavericks are looking to win games, not necessarily just see what they have in their newly drafted generational prospect. Although Flagg will be one of their key pieces, the sole purpose of next season for Dallas goes far beyond just making sure that Flagg develops in the best way possible.
Flagg should win the award, as he's assuredly the best newcomer in this class, but it might not be an easy path given the wing's situation.