Jim Boeheim offers lofty comparison for Duke All-American Cooper Flagg
Cooper Flagg is amid a spectacular freshman campaign with Duke, and the projected No. 1 pick in the NBA draft recently earned high praise from Hall of Famer Jim Boeheim.
Flagg was a consensus first-team All-American after averaging 18.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.3 blocks on 36.8% shooting from 3-point range in 32 games. He was also named the ACC Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year.
The 18-year-old entered the season with tremendous expectations as the consensus top recruit in the class of 2024. Boeheim, speaking on the "Dan Patrick Show" this week, believes Flagg has lived up to the hype with the Blue Devils.
"(Duke has) the best player in the country," Boeheim said. "He is the best all-around player that I've seen since Grant Hill. Grant Hill is the only guy that blocked shots, played defense, made shots, rebounded and passed, and he won a couple of national championships."
Hill, whose No. 33 is retired by Duke, was a two-time champion and three-time All-American in four years with the Blue Devils from 1990-1994. He is regarded as one of the best collegiate players in history after leading the program to the Final Four three times.
Flagg went viral over the summer after scrimmaging with the USA Basketball select team against the senior roster ahead of the Olympics. He earned praise after that showing from Kevin Durant and Hill, who serves as the managing director of the men's program.
With Duke set to begin the NCAA Tournament on Friday, Flagg can add to his historic freshman year by leading the program on a deep run through the field. The program is seeking its first national title since 2015.
This article originally appeared on Rookie Wire: Duke: Hall of Famer Jim Boeheim compares Cooper Flagg to Grant Hill
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