NBA Mock Draft: 3 lottery teams who become instant contenders with Cooper Flagg

Cooper Flagg... he's really good, folks.

The Duke freshman struggled with his shot out of the gate, which led to pointless speculation about his status as the projected No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. This is a loaded class, with future All-Stars like Dylan Harper and Kasparas Jakucionis putting a bit of heat on Flagg's heels. At the end of the day, though, there's a reason Flagg was the consensus top prospect coming into the campaign.

These last few weeks have cemented Flagg's standing on draft boards. The 6-foot-9 wunderkind began the season just 17 years old, lest we forget. He's beginning to string together elite performances on a nightly basis. His 42-point outing against Notre Dame over the weekend will go down in the Duke history books. It's one of the best regular season performances in Blue Devils history, especially among freshmen.

Averaging 19.1 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 3.9 assists on .479/.345/.806 splits, Flagg has handled one of the highest usage rates in college basketball, effectively operating as the sun around which Duke's offense orbits. He has been equally, if not more impactful on the defensive end.

There isn't a single team that should pass on Flagg in the No. 1 spot, but several lottery teams could parlay Flagg's arrival into an immediate postseason appearance. These current lottery teams feel especially well-positioned for a contending leap if Flagg lands on their roster.

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3. Charlotte Hornets

This feels right, no? Flagg is playing right down the road at Duke, and he could remain a hero of Carolina basketball as a member of the Charlotte Hornets. New head coach Charles Lee has done some great things in Charlotte, but the Hornets continue to toil at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings.

The clock is beginning to tick on LaMelo Ball's Hornets career. He's under contract through 2029, so there's no immediate pressure, but how much longer can Charlotte justify sticking with the current core if these subpar results continue? Flagg can change the Hornets' trajectory and give LaMelo the proper star running mate he deserves.

Charlotte has the talent, on paper, to start winning more games. Ball is enjoying his best individual season to date, averaging 29.9 points and 7.3 assists on respectable .423/.342/.831 splits. He's jacking pull-up 3s, improving steadily as a finisher inside the arc, and setting up all sorts of opportunities for his teammates. With Brandon Miller looking the part of a future All-Star on the wing, Charlotte has that 'one piece away' feeling. Flagg can push them to the next echelon of contention.

He gives Charlotte some much-needed defensive stoutness on the back line, as well as a great connective playmaker and secondary scorer to ease pressure on Ball. It may take time for Flagg to reach his NBA ceiling, but we can expect sharp decision-making, efficient three-level scoring, and a fiery demeanor from day one.

2. San Antonio Spurs

If the San Antonio Spurs continue to fall out of the postseason race, this is the dream — and man, if any team is going to get lucky enough to land both Victor Wembanyama and Cooper Flagg, it's the Spurs. No organization has been more blessed by the NBA Draft Lottery gods over the last two decades.

It's hard to overstate how tantalizing the Wemby-Flagg combo is on paper. Just the defense would put the Spurs in a different stratosphere than most teams. Wembanyama is primed to win DPOY for the next 10 years. He's unmatched in his ground coverage and rim deterence, weaponizing his comical 8-foot wingspan to full effect. Flagg, meanwhile, can switch all over the floor, stifle shots as a weak-side rim protector, and rack up deflections in passing lanes. The Spurs would be hard to score on.

As for the offensive fit, what team would better fit the trends of the modern NBA? We've already seen Wemby expand his offensive repertoire with each passing month. He's hitting pull-up 3s, creating for teammates, and operating more akin to Kevin Durant than Dirk Nowitzki or other classic stretch fives. Flagg brings legitimate ball-handling and playmaking chops at 6-foot-9, with enough 3-point shooting to keep the defense honest and enough strength to bully mismatches in the post.

Wemby and Flagg might dominate the West for 20 years. The basketball gods would be toying with the rest of the NBA at this point.

1. Philadelphia 76ers

It has been a miserable season for the Philadelphia 76ers, who just can't win without Joel Embiid on the floor. It's unclear if this team will ever be healthy enough to meaningfully contend in the East, but there's still a high ceiling with Embiid, Paul George, and Tyrese Maxey on the same roster. There's too much talent to count out the Sixers entirely.

If this ends up as a lost season, Philadelphia's best bet at salvaging a rapidly deteriorating situation is Cooper Flagg. It will probably take a lot of luck with the ping-pong balls — Philadelphia already needs to land in the top-six just to keep its pick — but Flagg is exactly what the Sixers are missing on paper.

What has been Philadelphia's downfall in recent years (aside from Embiid's tattered knees and breakable face)? A lack of size and rebounding from the perimeter. The Sixers' wing rotation just lacks depth behind Paul George, who himself tends to suffer untimely injuries. New York obliterated Philadelphia on the boards in the 2024 playoffs, while lackluster perimeter defense can often put a tremendous burden on Embiid in the paint.

Flagg accounts for pretty much all of those shortcomings. He's an elite help-side rim protector and switchable defender on the wing. He can crash the boards, do all the little things to connect dots on offense, and when all else fails, he can go out and get a bucket. The Sixers may need to transition Embiid out of a featured role in the coming years. His body just can't hold up in such a burdensome role. Flagg and Maxey is a great foundation to build upon — a bridge to the future that still keeps Philadelphia relevant in the present.

This is a pipe dream, of course, but man... it's one hell of a vision.