NCAA analyst explains Paige Bueckers edging over $4.8 million NIL-valued Cooper Flagg in NIL earnings: “No attachment on the men’s side”

Duke Blue Devils swingman Cooper Flagg has emerged as a standout figure in men's college basketball. The freshman sensation, with a NIL value is $4.8 million according to On3, has consistently risen to the occasion during the 2024-2025 season, propelling his team to the top of the rankings and making them national championship favorites.

But, UConn Huskies senior star Paige Bueckers appears to have surpassed Flagg in popularity and sales, due to overall fanfare. In a recent Youtube video on Thursday, March 13, college basketball analyst Robin Lundberg explained how this is the case where Bueckers has achieved greater commercial success than Flagg this year.

"UConn superstar Paige Bueckers was the top-earning athlete, male or female, in February while Duke's Cooper Flagg finished as the second highest earner. For somebody who grew up when I did, that's a huge deal," he pointed out. (1:41)

"The last major male college basketball star went to Duke, and that was Zion Williamson. But, of course, he was only there for a cup of coffee. The same thing goes for Cooper Flagg, which is one of the reasons this is happening the way it is that there is no attachment on the men's side," Lundberg said.

He then went into detail as to why this is the case and why there is more connection for Bueckers:

"People don't really feel the stories, follow the stories, grow accustomed to the players, see their journeys. They're just there, and then gone. It's almost that's going to be the case with Flagg because of the monetary incentive for him to go to the NBA, where he's projected to be the number one pick in the draft," Lundberg concluded.

After capturing the Big East regular season and tournament titles, Bueckers and the Huskies are aiming for even greater success as they gear up for a national tournament berth later this month.

Robin Lundberg doubles down on how much of a powerhouse program Duke was in the early 2000's

While he was explaining the narrative going on around NIL deals from both sides of colllegiate hoops, Robin Lundberg emphasized how powerful Duke was during his time in the early 2000's. The Duke Blue Devils are still a powerhouse program to this day, but he acknowledged that women's college basketball is steadily growing in popularity.

"Duke was the program. They were the needle-mover in college basketball. I went to the University of Maryland, we hated Duke at the time. That was when Jay Williams led a comeback and I was Cole Fieldhouse for that game. Maryland was up 10 with 54 seconds left and lost that game. We lost to Duke in the Final Four that year as well," Lundber reminisced. (2:00)

"But in the next year, won the championship. Obviously, during that Duke time, JJ Redick was there, Carlos Boozer, Coach K was there. But, they were the hated team. They were the Yankees, or that kind of team, the Lakers, in college sports," he added.

Cooper Flagg and the rest of the Blue Devils are now ramping up to face their longtime ACC rivals, the fifth-seeded UNC Tar Heels, in the 2025 conference tournament semifinal on Thursday, March 13.