Why doesn't Cooper Flagg wear No. 32 at Duke? Exploring five-star recruit's jersey number change

Cooper Flagg is arguably the most exciting freshman in the upcoming men's college basketball season. Duke's five-star recruit looks set to dazzle audiences across the nation, adorning the No. 2 jersey for the Blue Devils.

Prior to his commitment to the Blue Devils, Flagg wore the No. 32 jersey in his high school basketball career, during which he represented Nokomis Regional High and Montverde Academy. So, why the change?

Why is Cooper Flagg not wearing No. 32 at Duke?

Cooper Flagg originally chose the No. 32 because his mother, Kelly, wore the same number when she played high school basketball. When he learned that her teammate in college basketball at Maine, Stacey Clingan, also wore the same number, he doubled down on his decision to stick to the number.

Stacey Clingan, the mother of ex-UConn Huskies star and the Portland Trail Blazers' top pick in this year's draft, Donovan Clingan, passed away due to breast cancer in 2018.

Although Cooper Flagg sizzled on the nation's high school basketball scene while adorning the No. 32 jersey, he could not carry the number forward to college basketball. This is because the Blue Devils retired the number in 1992 to honor Christian Laettner, one of the greatest players in NCAA history.

Instead of 32, Flagg chose to go with the No. 2 jersey at Durham. In a conversation with teammate Caleb Foster on episode 31 of "The Brotherhood" podcast, the teenager chose to honor Donovan Kurt, who played at Nokomis Regional High alongside Flagg's elder brother, Hunter. Kurt passed away due to brain cancer when he was just 19 years old.

Cooper Flagg chose the #2 jersey to honor the memory of Donovan Kurt (image credit: Imagn)

Despite reclassifying from the Class of 2025 to the Class of 2024, Flagg emerged the top-ranked prospect in the class per ESPN. He is only the second signee in Blue Devils history after Toronto Raptors star RJ Barrett to get a 1.0000 rating from 247Sports.

In his senior season, Flagg was named the Naismith Player of the Year and the Gatorade National Player of the Year, as he led Montverde Academy to an unbeaten 33-0 season and the Chipotle High School Nationals title. He averaged 16.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.7 blocks in his final season of high school basketball.

Cooper Flagg seems to have carried that form into college basketball, as he was the Blue Devils' top scorer with 22 points in their exhibition game against the Lincoln Lions on October 19. He will officially begin his freshman season tomorrow, as the Blue Devils take on the Maine Black Bears at home.