Cooper Flagg Makes “Statement” In Rookie Of The Year Race

Cooper Flagg may have flipped the Rookie of the Year race back in his direction with a weekend scoring outburst, writes Tim MacMahon of ESPN. After posting 51 points on Friday – the highest total ever for an NBA teenager – the Mavericks forward followed it up with a 45-point performance and a near triple-double in Sunday night’s win over the Lakers.

Flagg and former Duke teammate Kon Knueppel of Charlotte have been waging a battle for ROY honors throughout the season. MacMahon notes that Knueppel entered the weekend as a -300 favorite, according to DraftKings Sportsbook, with Flagg at +225. Flagg’s scoring spree now has him listed as a slight favorite at -250, with Knueppel at +180.

“I think it’s definitely some sort of statement,” said Flagg, who also had nine assists, eight rebounds, two steals and a block on Sunday. “But it just goes back to what I said: I’m confident in myself, and I know what I’m capable of. I’ll just let the rest of the stuff figure itself out.”

MacMahon notes that Flagg has entered some elite company over the past three days. He owns three of the four 45-point games by a teenager in NBA history and is the first rookie to reach 45 points in two straight games since Walt Bellamy did it 64 years ago. Only six players have scored 45 points three times during their rookie seasons, with the others being Hall of Famers Bellamy, Wilt Chamberlain, Michael Jordan, Earl Monroe and Lew Alcindor, who were all named Rookie of the Year.

Dallas coach Jason Kidd told reporters that Flagg has special qualities that go beyond his ability to score.

“I don’t know if he’s making a closing statement,” Kidd said. “I think he’s doing what he’s been doing all season. Being able to play different positions. Being able to be uncomfortable. He’s never complained and has delivered for us. Tonight, being able to do it on national television, it’s not easy. Especially coming off a 50-ball. He wants to win, and he helped the team win tonight.”

Both Flagg and Knueppel have strong MVP cases heading into the final week of the regular season. Flagg, the No. 1 pick last June, leads all rookies in scoring at 20.8 PPG, is third in rebounding at 6.6 and second in assists at 4.5. Knueppel, the No. 4 selection, leads the league with 265 made three-pointers and recently broke the rookie record in that category. He’s averaging 18.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.4 assists and is playing on a 43-36 Hornets team that’s in contention for an automatic playoff spot, while the Mavs are winding down their season at 25-53.

Lakers star LeBron James was impressed by Flagg on Sunday and made a comparison to his own rookie season in Cleveland 22 years ago, according to Christian Clark of The Athletic.

“Kidd early on got a little scrutinized because they started him at point guard at times, and I thought that was unfair,” James said. “I think it’s great to put the ball in somebody’s hands so they can just go through the rough patches. And when you go through the rough patches, it allows you to grow at a rate faster than other players. That’s what (Cavaliers coach) Paul Silas, rest his soul, did for me. My rookie year, I basically started at point guard early on. He allowed me to make mistakes and make mistakes and make mistakes and play against tough defenses and stuff like that. So, I see similarities in that.”