All Cooper Flagg needed was one year of playing college basketball with the Duke Blue Devils to show he’s worthy of becoming the consensus No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft. Now, Flagg is in line to join the Dallas Mavericks after they lucked into winning the NBA Draft Lottery.
Last year’s No. 1 overall pick, Zaccharie Risacher, signed a preset contract for four years and $57 million. He earned $12.5 million in his first season. Flagg will eventually sign a similar contract (estimated at $62.7 million) with the Mavericks, yet he won’t make anything close to the same amount of money as he earned in NIL money while at Duke.
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According to ESPN’s Howard Bryant, Flagg raked in roughly $28 million in NIL earnings. The money came from a $13 million contract with shoe company New Balance and another $15 million thanks to a contract with Fanatics.
There’s nothing preventing Flagg from signing similar contracts and earning even more money once he officially arrives in the NBA. At least at that point he’ll be doubling down, thanks to having a salary with the Mavericks too. Plus, he’s still under contract with New Balance and Fanatics, giving him even more earning potential.
In other words, Flagg was never hurting for money in college and that’s surely going to continue once his NBA career tips off too.
Related: Chicago Bulls were ready to offer ‘everyone’ for this player
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