Lou Williams didn’t mince his words as he broke down why Cooper Flagg shouldn’t dodge the NBA Draft this year because of the teams he could land at. Williams brought up a great point: Whatever team you’re dodging, they’re going to be there next year.
Cooper Flagg’s first season at Duke just ended and Lou thinks it should be his last 🗣️
— Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) April 7, 2025
Is Flagg still playing in college next season, or did he take his talents to the next level? pic.twitter.com/9e9N8CpdCd
Flagg is the consensus No. 1 pick and truthfully, I don’t blame him for rethinking the NBA Draft if the Washington Wizards, Utah Jazz, Toronto Raptors and the Charlotte Hornets are the options. I wouldn’t want to land with any of those eternally rebuilding teams either.
But they are there for a reason. These teams aren’t good enough to turn things around in the year. The Hornets, Raptors and Wizards have been rebuilding for what feels like decades, but without adding a player like Flagg, they'll likely be right back in the high lottery next year.
Because Flagg is the the obvious No. 1 pick, money isn’t a reason to stay in college — he’d make much more in the NBA. The only reason Flagg could go back to Duke is to run it back and win the elusive championship Houston robbed them of.
Cooper Flagg shouldn’t be worried about chasing a national championship if his NBA future is on the line
Flagg has teased that he would come back to Duke and following the Blue Devils’ Final Four exit, rumors are circulating that he could forgo the NBA Draft. If he really wants to win a national championship that badly, kudos to him.
But it’s not worth it. Not when he could get injured and no longer be the No. 1 pick, especially when you look at a loaded 2026 NBA Draft class that could feature AJ Dybansta, Darryn Peterson and Cayden and Cameron Boozer.
I’d much rather be the No. 1 pick than go back and possibly come up short again and possibly get hurt, just to ultimately end up with a team I probably already would have in the previous draft. Again, this is all speculative, but NIL makes a Flagg return to Duke at least feasible.
That’s the cost of being the No. 1 pick — you’re destined for a struggling team. The good thing is with the right franchise player, you can turn it around in a year. But for teams like the Wizards, the Raptors and the Hornets, they aren’t any closer to leaving the rebuilding phase.
The Hornets drafted LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller and put a respectable enough core around them and they are still a bottomfeeder in the NBA. That’s not a situation I want to be in either. But like Williams said... a year isn't going to change that.
Flagg is much better off officially declaring for the NBA Draft, becoming the No. 1 overall pick and hoping that he can actually be the player one of the bottomfeeders in the league want to build around.