The John R. Wooden Award will celebrate it’s 50th anniversary this season. Leading up to the award ceremony on April 10, 2026, The Sporting Tribune in partnership with the Wooden Award and the Los Angeles Athletic Club will highlight past winners of the Wooden Award and the Legends of Coaching Award.
A small-town Maine prodigy, national high school phenom, Duke superstar, and number one pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, Cooper Flagg has one of the most linear ascents in modern basketball.
The 6 '9 standout as a two-way force during his time at Nokomis Regional High School. He soon transferred to Montverde Academy, the premier powerhouse in the country. There he won multiple national high-school player of the year awards and became the top recruit in the 2024 class. He produced a competitive edge that made him the most scouted high school player since Zion Williamson.
The 19-year-old played one season (2024-2025) at Duke and his freshman year was so dominant that he declared for the NBA. There was no such thing as easing him in. The spotlight gravitated toward him on opening night. Across 37 games he averaged 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 4.2 assists on 48.1% shooting and 38.5% from three.
Flagg swept nearly every major national and ACC honor available to him including, AP National Player of the Year, Consensus First-Team All-American, Naismith Award winner, USBWA Player & Freshman of the Year, NABC Player & Freshman of the Year, ACC Player of the Year, ACC Rookie of the Year, ACC All-Defense, and the Wooden Award.
Note that player of the year and freshman of the year across multiple organizations is almost unheard of.
Matt MacKenzie, Flagg's personal coach since he was 12, has helped shape him throughout his journey.
“I’m not somebody who’s going to work against them, I’m working with them," MacKenzie told Duke Wire in regards to his relationship with Flagg. "Just offering him a perspective, being in his ear if he has things he wants to talk about. If he wants somebody to lean on who will tell him the truth, he can come to me.”
Components like this launch the rookie forward. His March Madness performance just confirmed why he deserved every single one of the accolades listed. He had 27 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and three blocks in the Final Four against Houston. 30 points, six rebounds, and seven assists in the Sweet 16 against Arizona. And 18 points, nine rebounds, and six assists in Round 32 versus Baylor.
"If you’re the best player in the gym, then you need to find a new gym,” Flagg told reporters ahead of the draft.
Flagg was selected number one overall by the Dallas Mavericks, and has had a strong rookie season despite a foot injury he sustained mid-season. He is averaging just over 20 points, six rebounds, and four assists per game.