CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Duke couldn’t have drawn up a worse first half of the ACC tournament.
Not just because the Blue Devils trailed 31-26 to Georgia Tech at the break — but because star freshman forward Cooper Flagg, a contender for National Player of the Year, twisted his left ankle with 2:46 until halftime and had to immediately be helped off the court. Flagg jumped to grab a rebound when he appeared to land on a teammate’s foot, at which point he crumpled to the ground.
After teammates helped him off the floor, Flagg slammed his fists into his chair on Duke’s sideline before being assisted back to the Blue Devils’ locker room. The ESPN game broadcast showed Flagg being taken down an arena hallway in a wheelchair.
The 6-foot-9 Maine native had two points and four rebounds at the time of his injury.
It is unclear whether Flagg will be able to return to Thursday’s game.
Flagg’s injury was the second of the first half for a Duke team among the top contenders to win the national title. It came minutes after forward Maliq Brown — who has missed nine games due to injury already this season — re-injured a recent shoulder injury. Brown, arguably the most versatile defender on the nation’s fourth-best defense, was contesting a shot when he seemed to re-aggravate his shoulder injury. Brown mouthed “f—” to Duke’s trainers as soon as the injury happened, and immediately went back to Duke’s locker room for treatment.
His status is also uncertain for the remainder of Thursday’s contest, and potentially beyond.
This is a developing story. More to come.
(Photo: Jared C. Tilton / Getty Images)
