By Joshua Miranda

Sports Capital Journalism Program

SAN ANTONIO — It’s time to make room in the Flagg family trophy case. Cooper Flagg of the Duke Blue Devils has more hardware to showcase. Flagg appeared at a press conference as the winner of the Oscar Robertson Trophy as U.S. Basketball Writers Association Player of the Year less than an hour after he had been named the Associated Press Player of the Year.

Flagg and his Duke teammates will meet Houston Saturday night for a spot in the national championship game. Regardless of the outcome, he will leave Texas with two of college basketball’s most prestigious individual honors.

The freshman forward has averaged 18.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.5 steals, and 1.3 blocks per game on highly efficient shooting. In Atlantic Coast Conference play, he made 53.6% of his shots, including 44.0% from 3-point range. Duke coach Jon Scheyer, a strong believer in advanced analytics, said he has seen Flagg lead the ACC in defensive rating, offensive and total win shares, defensive and offensive box plus-minus, player efficiency rating, and points produced.

Flagg has already been named to the NCAA All-Region team, earned Consensus All-American honors, and was recognized as both the ACC Player of the Year and ACC Rookie of the Year. He also made the All-ACC, ACC All-Defensive, and ACC All-Freshman teams. These accolades, combined with three USBWA National Player of the Week selections and leading Duke to the Final Four as a freshman, solidify his credentials for winning the USBWA Player of the Year award.

Since the award’s inception in 1958, only three other freshmen have won it: Kevin Durant of Texas in 2007, Anthony Davis of Kentucky in 2012, and Zion Williamson of Duke in 2019. Flagg now joins that exclusive group, all of whom went on to be selected first or second overall in the NBA draft, a path he may soon follow. He is also just the 18th ACC player and the 10th Duke player to receive the honor. Davis was the only player in that group to win a national championship.

One other player, Tyler Hansbrough of North Carolina, was named National Freshman of the Year in 2006 and won the Oscar Robertson Trophy two years later.

Flagg continues to make history, becoming the youngest player ever to win the award. At just 18 years and three months old, he became eligible to vote last December—the same day Duke defeated Georgia Tech 82-56.

“I think it’s pretty cool,” Flagg said when asked about becoming the youngest player to win the award. “But it just speaks to the opportunity I’ve been given, the work I’ve put in, and my teammates and coaches for putting me in great positions all year long, letting me be me and letting me do what I do.”

This season has been a successful one for Duke, which won both the ACC regular-season and tournament titles before entering March Madness as the No. 1 seed in the East. Behind a young and talented roster, the Blue Devils are pushing toward their ultimate goal, a national championship.

Though this award honors regular-season performance, Flagg has elevated his game in the NCAA tournament, averaging 19.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 5.3 assists while shooting 42% from 3-point range. His biggest performance came in his first Sweet 16 appearance against Arizona, where he finished with 30 points, seven assists, six rebounds, and three blocks.

Flagg’s path to this stage has been unconventional. He was originally in the high school class of 2025. By reclassifying, he graduated high school early, allowing him to play college basketball at an age when most of his peers are high school seniors. He attended Montverde Academy in Florida, a program known for producing elite talent, including NBA lottery picks Ben Simmons, D’Angelo Russell, R.J. Barrett, Joel Embiid, and Cade Cunningham. That legacy continues with current stars such as Maryland’s Derik Queen and UConn’s Liam McNeeley, further underscoring Flagg’s status as a player destined for greatness.

As an 17-year-old freshman when he arrived in Durham last summer, it was important for the team to respect Flagg as a leader. Duke freshman Kon Knueppel remembered watching Flagg when he was in high school. “An incredible motor,” Knueppel said. “I thought that was the most impressive thing about him, but also just a skilled player on both ends, anticipating everything.”