Projected No. 1 pick in 2025 NBA Draft seals historic zero-deal, closing in on Livvy Dunne's seven-figure valuation

Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) continues to be kind to student-athletes across the country.

The radical policy change, which took effect in 2021, has allowed superstar athletes and influencers to earn millions from their personal brands for the first time in NCAA history.

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Cooper Flagg, widely expected to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, is the latest athlete to benefit from the change.

The 6-foot-9-inch prodigy just signed a historic no-cost contract with Gatorade, becoming the first NCAA men's basketball player to sign a no-cost contract with the sports drink brand.

“Cooper is an incredible talent who has quickly become one of the best young athletes in the country, and we know he has a bright future ahead of him,” Jeff Kearney, Global Head of Sports Marketing at Gatorade, said of The Duke Chronicle.

“At Gatorade, we work with the best of the best, so we are proud to welcome Cooper to the family and look forward to supporting him as he begins his college career.”

This comes after the 17-year-old basketball player signed a “significant” shoe endorsement deal with New Balance.

Flagg's decision to sign with the powerhouse sneaker brand may have something to do with the fact that New Balance has a massive manufacturing facility just 25 miles from Flagg's childhood home.

Such lucrative endorsement deals have resulted in the Newport, Maine native achieving a staggering zero rating.

According to On3, Flagg has an NIL valuation of $2.6 million, ranking fifth among all college athletes in the United States.

He trails only Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Sheduer Sanders ($6.2 million), LSU gymnast Livvy Dunne ($4 million), Buffaloes wide receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter ($3.4 million US dollars) and Texas Longhorns quarterback Arch Manning ($3.1 million).

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Flagg was a five-star recruit and was named National Player of the Year multiple times in high school.

He attended Montverde Academy in Florida, played in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League and has experience in the Amateur Athletic Union.

The teenage sensation stole the show in Las Vegas earlier this year as some of the world's best basketball players prepared for the 2024 Summer Olympics.

The small forward was one of 12 players on a select team who practiced against LeBron James and Steph Curry's Team USA ahead of their gold medal run at the Paris Olympics.

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Video footage from a scrimmage showed Flagg playing with supreme confidence as he fended off defenders, executed powerful dunks and made long-range shots.

“(He has a) high basketball IQ, tough and willing to learn,” USA Select Team and Orlando Magic head coach Jamahl Mosley said of Flagg.

“He gets to the spots he needs to make a shot a lot, is able to get to the rim, has great touch on his shot… I mean, he can play. “There's no in-between. I say he can just go full throttle in a lot of different forms.”

Flagg's accomplishments have caught the attention of numerous NBA legends.

When asked which young star under the age of 23 other than Victor Wembanyama and Anthony Edwards Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce would like to build a franchise, they both immediately said Flagg.

“I’ve seen Cooper Flagg play against NBA players,” Garnett said.

“So, I don't assume that, but when I assess a player to see where he is in terms of progress and whether he will be able to do A, B and C, that's what I saw “Great test,” he added, referring to Cooper's performances against Team USA.

“He has superstar potential that you can come in and get product behind him,” KG added.

“I could imagine kids wanting to be like that and play like that…

“We haven’t seen such a cold (expletive) white boy in a long time.”

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Flagg is currently a freshman at Duke, where he will play next season before declaring for the draft next spring.

The Brooklyn Nets, Washington Wizards, Detroit Pistons, Utah Jazz and Charlotte Hornets are just a few of the teams that could get the deal in June.

For now, though, his focus will be on winning a national title for the No. 7-ranked Blue Devils.

Duke is coming off a loss in the Elite Eight of the 2024 NCAA Tournament and will face Maine on Monday, November 4th in the first game of the new season.