Tim MacMahon
Multiple Authors
Teenage sensation Cooper Flagg was named NBA Rookie of the Year on Monday, narrowly defeating his former Duke roommate Kon Knueppel for the honour.
Flagg edged Knueppel by 26 factors in the voting by a panel of 100 media members. Flagg acquired 56 first-place votes, with the remaining going to Knueppel. Flagg had 44 second-place votes, whereas Knueppel acquired 55 second-place votes and one third place.
The 19-year-old Flagg turned the second-youngest participant to win the award, behind solely LeBron James.
“I see the games every night. I can check the box scores,” Flagg stated when requested how shut of an eye fixed he saved on Knueppel. “I think also I was watching Kon just because that’s one of my brothers.
“We had such an excellent connection, and we’re gonna be there for one another for the remainder of our lives. I used to be watching him as a fan, as properly, however there was clearly that competitors on the similar time.”
The 26-point voting gap between Flagg and Knueppel, 20, is the second smallest between the top finishers in a rookie of the year race since the current voting format began in the 2002-03 campaign, according to the NBA. Only the race between Scottie Barnes (378 factors) and Evan Mobley (363) in the 2021-22 season had a smaller gap.
Flagg, the No. 1 pick in last year’s draft, averaged 21.0 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.5 assists for the Dallas Mavericks, joining Larry Bird, Michael Jordan and Luka Doncic as the only rookies to average at least 20 points, six rebounds and four assists in the 50 seasons since the NBA-ABA merger. Flagg led all rookies in scoring, ranked second among qualifiers in assists and third in rebounds.
Knueppel, the No. 4 pick, averaged 18.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.5 assists while shattering the rookie record for 3-pointers made with a league-leading 273. He played a major role in a midseason turnaround for the Charlotte Hornets, who made a 25-win improvement from last season to finish 44-38 before being eliminated in the Eastern Conference play-in round.
Flagg’s anticipation of immediately playing for a playoff contender did not materialize, as injuries derailed the Mavericks’ season before they traded 10-time All-Star Anthony Davis to the Washington Wizards in a transfer motivated by creating monetary flexibility for a long-term construct across the rookie.
Dallas finished 26-56 as Flagg joined Jordan as the only rookies in NBA history to lead their teams in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals. Flagg was the only player in the NBA this season to lead his team in each of those categories.
Flagg, who turned 19 on Dec. 21, had a historic season for a teenager. He became the youngest player in NBA history to have games of 35, 40, 45 and 50 points, as well as the youngest to have at least 10 assists.
The 6-foot-9 Flagg, who opened his career as a point guard after never before playing the position, recorded three of the four 45-point performances by a teenager in league history. Doncic (five) and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (four) were the only players in the league with more 45-point games this season.
Flagg set the single-game scoring record for a teen with 49 points in a Jan. 29 loss to the Hornets — a spectacular duel with Knueppel, who had a season-high 34 points that night — then broke it by scoring 51 in an April 3 loss to the Orlando Magic.
Flagg additionally had six video games with at the least 30 factors, 5 rebounds and 5 assists, which was yet another such sport than the remainder of the rookie class mixed.
