NCAAB News: NBA team withdraws from Cooper Flagg race

Long before the start of the 2024-25 NBA season, scouts, experts, and fans were already talking about how multiple teams would star in an epic race to the bottom of the standings.

Duke Blue Devils star Cooper Flagg, who’s expected to be the first-overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, looked like a big-enough prize to make things give up on contending for a whole year.

That’s why Toronto Raptors analyst Christopher Kline couldn’t fathom why the team would trade for Brandon Ingram. While he might help them win some games, it could cost them their future superstar.

Toronto Raptors trade themselves out of Cooper Flagg race

“As for the Raptors, this trade comes at an awkward moment. Toronto is 16-35 with its sights set, presumably, on Cooper Flagg,” Kline wrote. “It’s not often that a team so blatantly engaged in a rebuild trades for an All-Star in his prime. Ingram should have a long window next to Scottie Barnes. He’s 27, with an appealingly modern skill set. But, it’s strange timing. The Raptors are stuck with a cumbersome cap sheet and not much top-end talent. Ingram makes them better for now, but it’s up for debate how much he moves the needle.”

Brandon Ingram of the New Orleans Pelicans

The Raptors are now entering dangerous territory. You never want to be stuck in the middle in pro sports, as they won’t be bad enough to get a top draft pick, nor good enough to be a legitimate contender.

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Then again, anything can happen, and we’ve seen teams win the NBA Draft lottery despite not having odds on their side. Still, Raptors fans might not be thrilled with this move.