Cooper Flagg Surges Back as Rookie of the Year Favorite
For the better part of the NBA season, Cooper Flagg was the Rookie of the Year favorite. Then, Kon Knueppel took his place at the top. With so little time left in the season, it felt like the red-hot Knueppel wasn't going to yield, but he slowed down, and Flagg heated way up. With 96 points in two games, Flagg's back at the top as the favorite.
Cooper Flagg takes over ROY race with three games left
Kon Knueppel has slumped a bit in his last six games, while Cooper Flagg has taken it back up a notch. That could be all it takes to shift the Rookie of the Year race one final time. With three games left, it's as good as over.
Flagg can be seen now at -210, and Knueppel is +150. Those aren't insurmountable odds, but time is not on Knueppel's side. Recent form isn't, either. In his last six, Flagg's averaging just under 30 points per game. Knueppel is under 14 and shooting below 40% from the field.
Though it's perhaps not fair, a two-game stretch may define the race. In the last two games, Knueppel is averaging 15.5 points, four rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.5 steals. He's shooting 42.3% from the field and 36.4% from three. Those are fine numbers.
Flagg, though, is on fire. He's averaging an absurd 48 points, seven rebounds, six assists, 2.5 steals, and 1.0 blocks. He's been outrageously good, shooting 57.9% from the field and 61.5% from three. He caught fire at the right time.
The rookie responds
Cooper Flagg was always the likely Rookie of the Year. Kon Knueppel's brilliance might've overshadowed that for a bit, but Flagg was billed as the next big thing, and he has mostly lived up to that this year. That includes two incredible games in a row.
"I think it's definitely some sort of statement," said Flagg after his 45-point outburst. "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."
"I don't know if he's making a closing statement," Mavericks coach Jason 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."
LeBron James chimes in
LeBron James got a front-row seat to the Cooper Flagg show on Sunday. The NBA legend watched his shorthanded Lakers (no Luka Doncic or Austin Reaves) get dominated by Flagg for one of the best performances versus James ever.
"I mean, he's obviously special," James said. "I've seen that all the way back to like the AAU days, when he was coming up in the ranks and playing with his team out of Maine, and he was doing the things that he was doing on the circuit. So, knew he was special from then, and he's just taken that from what he was doing back home to the AAU circuit to Duke to now here, and he's getting better and better and better."
James went on to praise the whole rookie class, though. "Look at VJ [Edgecombe] in Philly. Look at Kon in Charlotte, you look at Dylan [Harper] in San Antonio," he said. "It's a great rookie class, and all those guys are making an impact on their respective teams. So, the league is in good hands with those rookies."
Who deserves the award? The traditional metrics mostly favor Flagg, while the advanced analytics lean towards Knueppel, who has been enjoying one of the best shooting seasons in NBA history, regardless of a brief slump.
