ICYMI: Predicted No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg arrives in NYC ahead of the 2025 NBA Draft on Wednesday

Former Duke star Cooper Flagg is projected to be the first pick in the 2025 NBA draft. Barring a shocking trade, the Dallas Mavericks will make the pick when the draft begins on Wednesday. The NBA draft will be held at the Barclays Center, home of the Brooklyn Nets, in New York.

Flagg arrived in New York a few days later. While he was at the airport on Saturday, a video was posted of him on the NBA Future Starts Now Instagram account. In the clip, Flagg spoke about his excitement for the weekend.

"Excited. Should be a fun week, you know, filled with a bunch of stuff," Flagg said. "Blessed to be here, so yeah, should be fun. I think it's really coo. It means a lot. A bunch of my family will be here, friends driving up from Maine. So, we're going to celebrate this, see everybody and hopefully get my name called. So, cool thing and a special experience."

Cooper Flagg remained humble in the clip, even saying that he hopes he will hear his name called. There is zero doubt that Flagg will be drafted over the weekend. It is nearly a guarantee that he will be the first pick in the draft. If anything else happens, it would be one of the biggest shocks in NBA draft history.

Cooper Flagg is one of three former Duke Blue Devils projected to go in the top 10 of the 2025 NBA draft

Heading into the 2025 NBA draft, there are a lot of things that could happen on draft night. Some players could rise and others could fall. Fans will likely watch as several NBA teams trade various assets as the draft order shifts around. However, through all the changes, Cooper Flagg will likely remain the favorite to be the first pick in the draft.

However, he is not the only Duke player projected to go early in the draft. Flagg's former teammates, Kon Knueppel and Khaman Maluach, are also projected to be top 10 picks.

Of the two, Kon Knueppel is projected to be the higher draft pick. He declared for the draft after one college season, averaging 14.4 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.0 steals per game. Some projections even have him going in the top five.

Khaman Maluach is projected by most experts to go towards the end of the top 10. In his only college season, he averaged 8.6 ppg, 6.6 rpg and 1.3 bpg.