Bryce Harper shares advice for Cooper Flagg navigating March Madness pressure

Bryce Harper knows a thing or two about what it takes to overcome a ton of pressure at such a young age. Before Harper was the superstar he currently is in the MLB, he was being heralded as the next big thing in baseball at 16 years old.

Harper made an appearance on College Sports Radio with Mike Krzyzewski, Coach K asked the MLB superstar what advice he has for Duke standout Cooper Flagg and what he thinks about the freshman.

“Cooper, what a great talent,” Harper said. “It has been so much fun to watch him this year, and hopefully he comes back from that ankle and he’s ready to go. I would say to him, just be yourself. Undoubtedly, be yourself. Have fun with the game and understand that you’re still an 18-19-year-old playing the game that you have always loved. It is hard to do that at a level that is such business. Just have the same mindset about how you go playing the game and everything else.”

Very few athletes have had the amount of attention on them at such a young age like Cooper Flagg.

Bryce Harper is one of those athletes. What advice would Bryce have for Cooper on navigating this journey?@DukeMBB | @Phillies | @bryceharper3
https://t.co/BryJ1ZnbVx pic.twitter.com/EKL5mLJoiy

— College Sports on SiriusXM (@SXMCollege) March 20, 2025

Flagg has been everything the Blue Devils could have ever hoped for this year. He is a co-favorite for the National Player of the Year with Auburn center Johni Broome. He is a huge reason why Duke is the favorite heading into the tournament, and if he is able to come back healthy, he should be in store for a great tournament run.

Mark Kern