Cooper Flagg is expected to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. He was a highly touted prospect in high school, who chose to re-classify to skip a year of high school and instead jump to the world of college basketball a year ahead of schedule.
Flagg showed at Duke that he was worth the hype. He averaged 19.2 points and 7.5 rebounds in his lone season, but it was enough to be named the 2024-2025 Wooden Award winner for the best player in college basketball. Once it became clear that Flagg lived up to his high school billing, he was all but assured to be the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft.
Now that the time has come, the Mavericks own the first overall selection, and all signs are pointing to their selecting Flagg. If he does go No. 1 overall, he will become one of the youngest players ever drafted No. 1 overall in NBA history.
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Here is more on how old Flagg is and how he compares to the youngest No. 1 overall pick in history
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How old is Cooper Flagg?
Flagg is 18 years old. Specifically on draft day, he will be 18 years and 186 days old. This makes him one of the youngest No. 1 overall picks in NBA history.
Normally, we would see that age with someone coming right out of high school, but you can't do that in the NBA anymore. Players must be one year out of high school, but what they do with that year is up to them. Flagg chose to spend it playing for Duke. Others choose to play internationally or in smaller leagues here in the U.S. until they are draft-eligible.
Even though Flagg is one-and-done at Duke, he is still younger than other freshmen. That's because he chose to re-class in high school. He was eligible to reclassify because he would turn 18 during December of his freshman season. This made him part of the Class of 2024 and not Class of 2025 as originally scheduled.
As to why he re-classified, Flagg talked about it during his pre-draft press conference. He chose to go with a quote that he hears all the time from his mom.
"If you’re the best player in the gym, then you need to find a new gym." Flagg said that he considered what all he had left to prove in high school and when basketball as a career because the goal, he made the decision to "get to a new environment and push myself to a higher level."
Cooper Flagg, 18, on why he reclassified to graduate high school in three years and position himself as the youngest No. 1 NBA Draft pick since LeBron James: “A quote my mom likes to say a lot: ‘If you’re the best player in the gym, then you need to find a new gym.’” pic.twitter.com/k2D3XsKCv2
— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) June 24, 2025
Who is the youngest NBA No. 1 pick ever?
The youngest No. 1 overall pick ever is LeBron James. He was selected first by Cleveland in the 2003 NBA Draft. At the time of his selection, James was 18 years, 178 days old. Flagg will miss the record for being the youngest ever selected No. 1 overall by a mere eight days.
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Who are the youngest NBA draft picks ever?
James may be the youngest No. 1 overall pick in NBA history, but he isn't the youngest player ever drafted. That honor belongs to Andrew Bynum, who was 17 years and 245 days old when he was selected 10th overall in the 2005 NBA Draft back when the league didn't have the added restrictions it does now on draft eligibility.
Here are the youngest players drafted in NBA history.
| Rank | Player | Age | Team | Pick | Year |
| 1 | Andrew Bynum | 17 years, 245 days | Los Angeles Lakers | 1.10 | 2005 |
| 2 | Jermaine O'Neal | 17 years, 256 days | Portland Trail Blazers | 1.17 | 1996 |
| 3 | Kobe Bryant | 17 years, 307 days | Charlotte Hornets | 1.13 | 1996 |
| 4 | Darko Milicic | 18 years, 6 days | Detroit Pistons | 1.02 | 2003 |
| 5 | Bill Willoughby | 18 years, 14 days | Atlanta Hawks | 1.19 | 1975 |
| 6 | Tracy McGrady | 18 years, 32 days | Toronto Raptors | 1.09 | 1997 |
| 7 | Ersan Ilyasova | 18 years, 44 days | Milwaukee Bucks | 2.06 | 2005 |
| 8 | Yaroslav Korolev | 18 years, 52 days | Los Angeles Clippers | 1.12 | 2005 |
| 9 | Amir Johnson | 18 years, 58 days | Detroit Pistons | 2.26 | 2005 |
| 10 | Andris Biedrins | 18 years, 83 days | Golden State Warriors | 1.11 | 2004 |
| 11 | CJ Miles | 18 years, 102 days | Utah Jazz | 2.04 | 2005 |
| 12 | Al Harrington | 18 years, 128 days | Indiana Pacers | 1.25 | 1998 |
| 13 | Andrei Kirilenko | 18 years, 132 days | Utah Jazz | 1.24 | 1999 |
| 14 | Bruno Sandov | 18 years, 135 days | Dallas Mavericks | 2.05 | 1998 |
| 15 | Maciej Lampe | 18 years, 141 days | New York Knicks | 1.30 | 2003 |
| 16 | Darryl Dawkins | 18 years, 143 days | Philadelphia 76ers | 1.05 | 1975 |
| 17 | Jonathan Bender | 18 years, 151 days | Indiana Pacers | 1.05 | 1999 |
| 18 | LeBron James | 18 years, 178 days | Cleveland Cavaliers | 1.01 | 2003 |
| 19 | Sekou Doumbouya | 18 years, 179 days | Detroit Pistons | 1.15 | 2019 |
| Ulrich Chomche | 18 years, 179 days | Toronto Raptors | 2.27 | 2024 |
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