Kevin Durant: Duke’s Cooper Flagg Looks Like ‘Hell of a Player’ in Team USA Camp

Julia StumbaughJuly 9, 2024

Juan Ocampo/NBAE via Getty Images

Incoming Duke freshman Cooper Flagg has impressed 14-time NBA All-Star Kevin Durant with his performance during USA Basketball’s Olympic training camp.

“From the sideline, he looked like a hell of a player, somebody that’s going to only get better with more experience,” Durant said Tuesday (h/t The Washington Post’s Ben Golliver.) “17 years old, coming in here and playing like he’s a vet, almost. No emotion, just out there doing his job. That’s a good sign.”

Ben Golliver @BenGolliverSuns’ Kevin Durant on Duke’s Cooper Flagg at USA Basketball camp: “He looks like a hell of a player. … He’s 17 years old coming in here playing like a vet almost. No emotion. Just going out there and doing his job. That’s a good sign.” pic.twitter.com/IupKki3c8T

Flagg was one of 15 athletes named to Team Select to train with the USA Basketball Men’s National Team this week in Las Vegas ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics. The Duke prospect, who turns 18 in December, is the only member of the team with no NBA experience.

He is also the first college player to be invited since Doug McDermott and Marcus Smart joined the squad in 2013.

This is not the first time Durant has complimented Flagg, who is an early favorite to be the No. 1 pick of the 2025 NBA Draft.

“Young dudes, it’s hard to truly understand, when you’re playing against high school competition, you don’t know who’s the best of the best… but the intangibles that he has, and his measurables, and his raw talent, I can see that through the TV,” Durant told Rich Kleiman for Boardroom in February (52:30 mark.)

Durant continued: “When you’re 6’10”, and then come running up and down the floor like that, and got the instincts with the basketball like that, you’re only going to— if you work at it, and you care, and you’re consistent with who you are, like I said, showing up every day— if you show up every day, and be the best that you can be, I think Cooper Flagg could be one of the best players in the league for 15 years.”

Seeing Flagg play in person against a star-studded Team USA roster that features LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Stephen Curry apparently has not changed Durant’s mind, especially given the incoming freshman’s ability to hold his own on the court against NBA veterans:

NBA Future Starts Now @nbafuturenowCooper Flagg recovers for the slam 💪

Select Team vs. National Team Scrimmage 🍿 pic.twitter.com/IXbb9vDrgK

While Team USA veterans like Durant are getting their first glimpse of Flagg, the Duke prospect has been getting his first glimpse of what it will be like to be in the NBA. He told ESPN’s Tim Bontemps that he is learning about the pros’ conduct, training and game preparation while attending the Vegas camp.