The narrative around college basketball’s freshman class centers on one player entering the 2024-25 season. That player is Duke’s Cooper Flagg, who will be just 17 years old when the Blue Devils begin a new campaign on Nov. 4 against Maine, which is Flagg’s home-state school.
Though he won’t even be old enough to vote in November’s presidential election, Flagg is bearing the weight of a historically proud program on his back after ranking as the No. 1 overall prospect in the Class of 2024. The Blue Devils’ hopes of winning an ACC regular-season title for the first time since coach Mike Krzyewski’s final season in 2022 ride largely on the hopes of what Flagg can be.
Without a single game of college basketball under his belt, the 6-foot-9 forward is already projected to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, and it will be no surprise when he starts showing up on preseason All-American lists. But he’s not going to be the only high-impact freshman in college basketball this season.
In fact, there are five additional top-40 freshmen on Duke’s roster beyond Flagg. Meanwhile, five-star talents and potential NBA Draft lottery picks dot the rosters of other teams around the country. For this week’s Dribble Handoff, our writers are picking the players they think are most likely to challenge Flagg for Freshman of the Year in college basketball, though of course the award will be Flagg’s to lose.
Remember when RJ Barrett was the highest-ranked prospect in Duke’s 2018 recruiting class — but then Zion Williamson, his less-heralded teammate, won National Freshman of the Year? Remember when Justin Edwards was the highest-ranked prospect in Kentucky’s 2023 recruiting class — but then Reed Sheppard, his less-heralded teammate, won National Freshman of the Year?
Something similar could happen at Rutgers this season.
Ace Bailey is technically the highest-ranked prospect in the Scarlet Knight’s 2024 recruiting class — but it’s not crazy to think that Harper, his (slightly) less-heralded teammate, could emerge as the biggest challenger to Flagg for National Freshman of the Year honors. The son of five-time NBA champion Ron Harper is a 6-foot-6 guard with a 6-10 wingspan who can play on or off the ball. Over the past year, he’s reportedly added muscle and improved in a variety of ways, so much so that it’s reasonable to assume Rutgers just might spend the winter competing for what would be its first Big Ten championship. — Gary Parrish
Ace Bailey, Rutgers
This one’s a long shot because Bailey’s got another elite prospect coming in with him. Harper will be the floor general for the Scarlet Knights this season, with Bailey as his ultra-athletic running mate. Harper ranked No. 3 in the class of 2024. No. 2? That’d be Bailey, a lean 6-7 wing who has incredible hops, will be a plus-defender and should be able to be a reliable mid-range shooter without much delay in his first few weeks of D-I play.
Whereas Harper will be a key facilitator on the most interesting Rutgers team — maybe ever — Bailey can be the guy who manages to average north of 15 points as a freshman, doing so in a variety of ways. This RU team is going to be really intriguing, and it’d shock me if Bailey doesn’t land on the short list of most must-watch players nationally by the time we get to Christmas. — Matt Norlander
Kasparas Jakučionis, Illinois
Jakučionis isn’t the top-ranked player in his own recruiting class, much less in the 2024 class, but Illinois has a good one on the way with him primed to make noise as a ready-made producer next season. The Lithuanian 18-year-old has size, skill and a lethal scoring ability that should fit him perfectly in Brad Underwood’s offensive ecosystem, and opportunity will be aplenty for him in this situation.
The Illini’s top four scorers from last season — including All-American Terrence Shannon Jr. — are all off to the pros, meaning he could be called upon early and often as the team reloads. With Arizona transfer Kylan Boswell likely handling the brunt of the playmaking duties, Jakučionis is a fun team fit in a fun system that should marry his best traits as a player with Underwood’s best traits as a coach to deliver him from relatively unknown prospect into household name territory by season’s end. — Kyle Boone
Jalil Bethea, Miami
Miami returns perimeter players Nijel Pack and Matthew Cleveland, but neither are certified bucket-getters like Bethea. Ranked the No. 7 overall prospect in the class, Bethea was regarded as “one of the best scoring guards and shot-makers in the country this year,” per 247Sports director of scouting Adam Finkelstein. That makes him a nice fit in a Miami system that has been at its best with a high-scoring lead guard in recent years.
The ‘Canes reached the Final four in 2023 with Isaiah Wong leading the way at 16.2 points per game and went 26-11 the year before with Kim McGusty averaging 17.8 points. Bethea is Miami’s highest-ranked basketball commitment of the 247Sports era, and the early returns from his time on campus have been encouraging. Look for him to flourish as a freshman. — David Cobb
V.J. Edgecombe, Baylor
I’m on record in April (before Edgecombe balled out on the Bahamas National Team) that he was my favorite NBA Draft prospect in this class outside of Flagg. That belief couldn’t be stronger heading into the season based on what I saw this summer. Edgecombe has drawn some comparisons to players such as Sacramento Kings guard De’Aaron Fox and Houston Rockets guard Jalen Green because of his quickness and elite athleticism. Edgecombe is probably more of an SG/off-ball guard in the NBA, but how he attacks the rim is fun to watch.
Baylor coach Scott Drew has a strong track record of developing first-round talent in recent years (Davion Mitchell, Jeremy Sochan, Keyonte George, Yves Missi and Ja’Kobe Walter to name a few) and there’s a strong possibility that Edgecombe will be the highest-drafted player of the bunch. My official prediction: he has such a strong freshman season in a Baylor uniform that he gets drafted No. 2 in the 2025 NBA Draft behind Flagg. — Cameron Salerno
