Cooper Flagg will be on the court in a Duke basketball uniform the next time the Blue Devils play North Carolina in the regular season, but on Saturday night he will be getting his first taste of the rivalry.
The top recruit in the nation walked into Cameron Indoor Stadium about 30 minutes before tipoff to see the two teams battle in Durham.
It will be the first time the Montverde Academy (Fla.) standout is at a Duke game this season and his first time on campus since his official visit in late October, when he committed a few weeks later.
The 6-foot-9 forward was named as the 2024 Naismith Boys High School Basketball Player of the Year this week.
Cooper Flagg is in the building. pic.twitter.com/4eQB7JvvMY
— Carolina Blitz (@KeepBlitzin) March 9, 2024
It's also the first time Flagg is seeing Duke battle North Carolina.
Cooper Flagg is in attendance with his future teammates Patrick Ngongba, Isaiah Evans, and Darren Harris -- all of whom are a members of the top ranked 2024 recruiting class.
Khaman Maluach, a 5-star International prospect, is the most recent member of the class after his commitment to the Blue Devils this week, and Kon Knueppel, a 5-star signee from the state of Wisconsin, is also a member of the next batch of Duke players.
It's unclear how many players on the current squad will be teammates with Cooper Flagg next season in Durham as most indications are that players such as Jeremy Roach, Tyrese Proctor, Kyle Filipowski, and Mark Mitchell will move on to the next chapters of their careers.
Major questions need to be answered about the NBA Draft status of star freshman Jared McCain, who has shined after a rocky start to his debut season.
Regardless, it seems likely that Duke will be one of the top teams in the country next season but Cooper Flagg is getting an up-close look at what his future will be in the rivalry tonight.