Duke's Cooper Flagg reveals injury status for NCAA Tournament opener

On Thursday, Duke forward Cooper Flagg confirmed he plans to return in the Blue Devils' NCAA Tournament opener against Mount St. Mary's on Friday at 2:50 p.m. ET on CBS.

Flagg suffered an ankle injury in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals against Georgia Tech on March 13 and missed the Blue Devils' past two games. Flagg said he wasn't limited in practice Wednesday and is "pain-free," according to ESPN's David Hale. 

"We've been working through the steps of just getting back to 100 percent, and I feel very good," Flagg said Thursday, per Hale. "I'm very confident moving forward."

No. 1 seed Duke (31-3) could probably win its matchup against No. 16 seed Mount St. Mary's (23-12) without Flagg, who leads the team in scoring (18.9 points per game in 32 games). It captured the ACC Tournament title without the 6-foot-9, 205-pounder. 

More importantly, Mount St. Mary's doesn't look like a team that could upset the Blue Devils. They're No. 236 in the NET rankings, and ESPN Analytics gives them a 1% chance to beat Duke.

With Duke's first-round matchup looking like a potential breeze, that may raise questions about whether Flagg should rest.

In Tankathon's latest mock draft, the Washington Wizards take him with pick No. 1. Suffering a major injury could impact his NBA future. 

However, NBC Sports analyst/former Michigan guard Jalen Rose noted if Flagg doesn't play, that could increase the chance Duke gets bounced.

"Yes, it's the NCAA Tournament," Rose said Tuesday when asked if Duke could lose without Flagg, via Fox News' Scott Thompson. "And the one thing about the separation between teams, it isn't as mighty when you're without your best player who might be the No. 1 pick in the [2025 NBA] Draft. That's just how this works. So, yes, they could be in trouble if he doesn't come back."

With that in mind, Flagg probably doesn't want his team to take its chances without him.