Heading into the NCAA Tournament, Duke basketball is one of the favorites to win the national championship. Duke has earned that distinction after a stellar regular season that saw it roll through the ACC, beat Auburn in the non-conference, and take home the ACC Tournament Championship with a win over Louisville on Saturday night.
There is still a slight cloud hanging over this Duke team heading into Thursday’s games. Star forward Cooper Flagg injured his ankle in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament on Thursday against Georgia Tech and did not play in the last two games.
After the ACC Tournament, Duke and head coach Jon Scheyer said that Flagg is expected to be available for the NCAA Tournament. On Monday, we got a clearer timeline of what that may look like, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
What’s Cooper Flagg’s timeline for returning for Duke? Spoke with @MattBarrie on @SportsCenter about it. pic.twitter.com/bUzHSPiLAf
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) March 17, 2025
“Duke has its first practice of the week — they were off yesterday — and the timeline Jon Scheyer has laid out indicates that today, Flagg will return for on-court work,” Thamel said. “He will then, hopefully, build up to full-on practicing and be available on Friday. Jon Scheyer called that the goal for the week and he said things were hoping to go ‘full steam ahead.’”
Duke probably doesn’t need Flagg to be on the court for the first game against either American or Mount St. Mary’s on Friday, considering it just beat North Carolina and Louisville on back-to-back days without him. However, a second round game against either Baylor or Mississippi State could be tricky if the projected No. 1 overall pick is unable to go.
This Duke basketball team will also likely be playing without big man Maliq Brown, who dislocated his shoulder for the second time this season during that quarterfinal against Georgia Tech. Brown’s timeline is not as shiny as Flagg’s, and there is a good chance he is done for the season.
At the very least, Duke needs Flagg to get back by the second weekend if it wants to remain a favorite to win the title. He impacts winning tremendously on both ends of the floor with his size, length, ability to shoot and handle the ball and willingness to help the Blue Devils out on the glass. If he is unable to get back on the floor, the second weekend will be very difficult for Duke to make it through.
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