The NBA made it official, Cooper Flagg is headed to the green room. And while that may sound like breaking news, the guy’s been the consensus No. 1 pick since his first college game tipped off at Duke.
Flagg headlines the first wave of 13 players invited to Barclays Center for the 2025 NBA Draft, which for the second straight year will stretch across two days, with Round 1 on June 25. Joining Flagg are top names like Dylan Harper, Ace Bailey, VJ Edgecombe, and Khaman Maluach.
The green room itself isn’t just a draft-night formality, it’s a strategic list built with care.
Team executives across the league are asked to vote on the 25 players they expect to be taken first, ensuring the NBA avoids long, awkward waits on national television, ESPN says.
That’s why receiving an early invite, like Flagg and the 12 others did on Tuesday, is a strong indicator of how teams truly value these prospects behind closed doors.
While surprises always happen, being part of that first batch usually means you’re locked into lottery territory.
Still, as history has shown, that comfy green room seat can turn into a spotlight of anxiety. Remember Bol Bol? Deyonta Davis? Or last year, Johnny Furphy and Kyle Filipowski, both early invites, both dropped to Round 2.
As for Flagg, he’s fresh off a monster freshman season at Duke where he averaged 19.2 points, 7.5 boards, and led the team in every major category, points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks. He also walked away with both the Naismith and Wooden Awards.
All signs point to the Dallas Mavericks snatching him up with the top pick. The kid’s been called one of the best NBA prospects in a generation.
June 25 can’t come fast enough for Dallas Mavericks fans as well as Cooper Flagg himself.
READ MORE: New Report on Tom Thibodeau’s Firing at Knicks Emerges