Duke Basketball Recruiting: Countdown to Cooper Flagg Craziness Begins

Duke basketball should get the last crack at impressing top-ranked prep Cooper Flagg.

Cooper Flagg, a 6-foot-9, 200-pound five-star forward who ranks No. 1 overall on the 247Sports 2024 Composite and has sat atop Duke basketball's recruiting wishlist for over a year, hasn't set dates for his presumed fall official visits.

But earlier this month, his mother noted that the Blue Devils, plus the most recent national champions in UConn and Kansas, will get a chance to host him. And on the latest edition of 247Sports' College Basketball Recruiting Weekly, national recruiting insider Eric Bossi laid out the most likely dates for those trips.

Based on what he's hearing, Bossi projects Flagg to be at UConn in late September before likely heading to Kansas a week or so later, coinciding with the Jayhawks' Late Night in the Phog festivities on Oct. 6.

"And Duke," Bossi noted, "they're gonna get the last chance with him, most likely with their Countdown to Craziness event."

Cooper Flagg is the top ranked prospect in the country.

As @TravisBranham_ broke last week, Flagg will visit Duke, UConn, and Kansas this fall.

On this week's show, @ebosshoops talked about when those visits might take place.

📺 https://t.co/w2zzNFaSd3 pic.twitter.com/xf1qydjhTR

— Adam Finkelstein (@AdamFinkelstein) August 29, 2023

This year's Countdown to Craziness in Cameron Indoor Stadium, an annual recruiting tool for the Blue Devils as they formally introduce the new team to the fans ahead of the season, is slated for Friday, Oct. 20, at 7 p.m. ET.

Thus far, only one 2024 Duke basketball target, Long Island Lutheran (N.Y.) five-star small forward VJ Edgecombe, has announced an official visit to Durham for the Countdown to Craziness weekend.

"As these visits start, I would probably say that Duke is still the leader and the team to beat heading into these [visits]," Bossi explained about the Blue Devils' pursuit of Flagg, who took an unofficial visit to Duke in early August. "But Duke wasn't going to get this guy without a fight. And they're not going to get this guy without a fight..."

Even so, all 13 predictions for Cooper Flagg's destination between the Rivals FutureCast, On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine, and 247Sports Crystal Ball continue to show the Blue Devils as the clear frontrunner in the high-profile sweepstakes.

RELATED: List of Every Recruit Currently Holding a Blue Devil Offer

Assuming Bossi's projected visit dates prove true, it feels like a safe bet that Cooper Flagg will announce a winner in his recruitment sometime between his trip to Duke and the early signing period in November.

Stay tuned to Blue Devil Country on SI.com for more Duke basketball recruiting news.