Cooper Flagg is Ultimate Goal for Brooklyn Nets

Duke forward Cooper Flagg would be the grand prize for Brooklyn this season.

Jan 7, 2025; Durham, North Carolina, USA; Duke Blue Devils forward Cooper Flagg (2) carries the ball up the floor during the second half against the Pitt Panthers at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images / Rob Kinnan-Imagn Images

After trading off some of its win-now core in recent weeks, the Brooklyn Nets are finally trending the right direction: south, towards the top of the 2025 NBA Draft.

The team has now lost six of its last seven games, a necessary price given other teams contending for top draft picks have been doing the same for months. Franchises like Washington and New Orleans have a head start on Brooklyn, but the Nets should be in contention for the top-three soon enough.

Where nabbing a top-five selection would be a win, earning the No. 1 pick and drafting Duke’s Cooper Flagg is the ultimate goal.

The ’25 class has a host of talented players, such as the Rutgers duo of Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey, Illinois guard Kasparas Jakucionis, and plenty more. But Flagg likely tops more boards than any other player.

At 6-foot-9, has premier athleticism and feel for the game, culminating with two-way play on the court. He has all the genetic makeup of a high-impact players, and after a slow-ish collegiate start, the stats are starting to follow.

In his last five games with the Blue Devils, he’s scored over 20 points, nabbed 7.4 rebounds and dished 4.0 assists per game, shooting 52% overall and 50% from 3-point land.

Suffice it to say, Flagg would make the perfect draftee for the Nets to kick off their rebuild with officially.

Still, the team has its work cut out for it in earning the top odds. As it stands now, Brooklyn has the sixth-worst record in the league, good for just a 9% chance at landing No. 1 and Flagg. If the Nets were eventually able to surpass Utah, Charlotte and Toronto in the reverse standings, it would earn the top odds, still just a 14% chance at the top pick, shared with two other teams.

Luckily, the Nets teams may very well be built to lose more games near the end of the season, opposed to others.

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