Cooper Flagg, born December 21, 2006, is an American professional basketball phenom who was selected as the first overall pick by the Dallas Mavericks in the 2025 NBA draft. He quickly gained national attention during his high school career, initially at Nokomis in Maine before transferring to Montverde Academy in Florida, where he earned multiple national player of the year honors as a senior, including the prestigious Gatorade National Player of the Year in 2024. As the top-ranked recruit in the 2024 class, Flagg committed to the Duke Blue Devils on October 30, 2023. During his freshman year at Duke, which began with his college debut on November 4, 2024, he achieved consensus first-team All-American and national player of the year honors. His exceptional talent led to a swift and dominant rise from high school star to the pinnacle of collegiate basketball, culminating in his top draft selection.