Cooper Flagg

[GSWFan1994]

My comp: middle class man's Larry Bird, with a touch of Kirilenko.

[LakerLegend]

https://basketball.realgm.com/wiretap/279882/NBA-Execs-Compare-Cooper-Flagg-To-Tatum-Kawhi-Pippen

[FrodoBaggins]

Duke's Cooper Flagg named AP men's basketball Player of the Year

https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/44533434/duke-cooper-flagg-named-ap-men-basketball-player-year

The 6-foot-9, 205-pound forward from Newport, Maine, won a two-man race with Auburn star Johni Broome. Both players were unanimous first-team AP All-Americans with teams at the Final Four, and they were the only two to receive player-of-the-year votes, with Flagg getting 42 of the 61.

Flagg joins Duke's Zion Williamson (2019), Kentucky's Anthony Davis (2012) and Texas star Kevin Durant (2007) as freshman winners. Each went either No. 1 or No. 2 in the NBA draft a few months later. Flagg is the eighth Duke player to win the award, the most of any program.

[BigGargamel]

My comp: middle class man's Larry Bird, with a touch of Kirilenko.

Absolutely nothing like Larry Bird, but I guess you gotta compare white guys to white guys.

More like Tatum coming out of Duke. But really though, he's his own guy. No really good comparisons out there.

[JustBuzzin]

My comp: middle class man's Larry Bird, with a touch of Kirilenko.

Absolutely nothing like Larry Bird, but I guess you gotta compare white guys to white guys.

More like Tatum coming out of Duke. But really though, he's his own guy. No really good comparisons out there.

Bro really said Larry Bird lmao

[ReggiesKnicks]

My comp: middle class man's Larry Bird, with a touch of Kirilenko.

Absolutely nothing like Larry Bird, but I guess you gotta compare white guys to white guys.

More like Tatum coming out of Duke. But really though, he's his own guy. No really good comparisons out there.

Hmm...Flagg is bigger, shows a lot more IQ, is a much better passer and as a result a better offensive connector right out of the gate.

I don't mind the Bird comparison and think it's more apt than Tatum.

[CobraCommander]

Melo and Flagg gonna be crazzzy

[FrodoBaggins]

Bird with some Kirilenko sprinkled in isn't a bad comparison. You just have to make the logical deduction of what elements are carried over/blended. It's just a little harder to visualize because Bird played in college and the pros between 50 and 32 years ago. Rules and their interpretations were different back then. The style of play was different.

I imagine Larry's shooting gets nerfed, but his athleticism gets buffed. That's the obvious first step. Kind of like if you mixed Bird and Bobby Jones back then. Something like that. Would have less juice as a perimeter sniper but more presence and impact in transition and on defense. More of a dribble-penetration threat and foul drawer, too.

The Tatum and Pippen comparisons are a little easier to conceptualize because they're more modern and are closer physical (size + athleticism) matches.

A stronger, more athletic Tatum with better defense, passing, and mid-range shooting but worse pull-up three-point shooting works. A less twitchy but stronger, more offensively skilled Pippen is nice also. I like both of those. Maybe my favorite is a bigger, better shooting Jimmy Butler. That's been my comp for awhile now.

[tsherkin]

Bird with some Kirilenko sprinkled in isn't a bad comparison. You just have to make the logical deduction of what elements are carried over/blended. It's just a little harder to visualize because Bird played in college and the pros between 50 and 32 years ago. Rules and their interpretations were different back then. The style of play was different.

Nothing about Bird's offensive game overlaps with Flagg, who is ALSO a considerably superior defender. It's a horrible starting point for comparison.

Your Butler comparison makes a lot more sense. Bigger Butler + AK (at least on projected peak form) is at least interesting and stylistically appropriate.

Bird is a whole different thing from every angle.

[JustBuzzin]

Put this dude in Charlotte let him turn this franchise around.

[The Master]

You just won't get a proper comparison for Flagg if you want to visualize his ceiling and playing style. LeBron is a tier better prospect and completely different player in terms of his strengths. Flagg has a tier bigger upside than Tatum as a playmaker and defender. Butler is a 32% 3pt shooter on low volume and Flagg has much higher projection as a shooter, he'll be more of 'inside' defender as well. He has much higher potential as a scorer than Pippen as well.

Two-way point forward with strong shooting splits, great off-ball skills and strong defensive presence is a ceiling for Flagg - and there's an intersection with Larry Bird here, even if he won't become as good shooter while being a better defender. He's 50 years younger, obviously he's a different player if you take it in literal way. But the combination of playmaking, shooting, scoring, on-ball and off-ball skills and defense (even if Bird was overrated as a defender to some extent) is a reason why Bird was historically such a unicorn - and potentially a reason why Flagg will become one.

I actually agree that there's no better comparison than Bird here overall.

[tmorgan]

Flagg is intriguing because there isn’t a comp that’s more than 75% accurate. I mean, a bigger, better shooting Jimmy Buckets is fine, but once you make those changes, he’s not all that similar to Butler. He’s a potentially great defender, but not that similar to AK because he’s going to be less twitchy but stronger, and his offensive game will hopefully be better. Pippen with less athleticism and more offense isn’t Pippen, etc.

None of this diminishes Flagg as a prospect — if anything, it makes him more intriguing. Who knows exactly what he becomes?

[SpurNani]

I see him as a more athletic combination of Franz and Paulo, but i think he has defensive upside to be one of the best in the league.

[FrodoBaggins]

https://talksport.com/basketball/2963249/cooper-flagg-duke-larry-bird-boston-celtics-boeheim-jim/

One Hall of Fame coach even compared the young star to one of the game's greatest players.

The legendary Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim appeared on Don't @ Me with Dan Dakich, and had high praise for the Duke freshman.

"I think he's almost — to me he's Bird-like a little bit," Boeheim said.

...

"Except, he's quicker, faster, more athletic; he doesn't shoot (the ball) as well, but his shot is coming," Boeheim continued.

"His shot is there; it may not be there this year, but it's there. He's got a good release.

"People that say other people are better than him just don't know anything about basketball, I mean, it's just crazy.

"I don't know what they're watching, maybe they're just trying to be contrarian or something, I don't know, but Cooper Flagg, he's the best all-around player — in terms of doing all the things in college basketball — that I've seen."

[CobraCommander]

Put this dude in Charlotte let him turn this franchise around.

That’s a fun thought - go from Duke to the Hornets -

Cooper could keep going to Duke as he played for the Hornets

Best of both worlds - plus Melo and Flagg could be the most fun duo in the NBA

[LakerLegend]

Moment of truth for Flagg today.

[dc]

I see him as a more athletic combination of Franz and Paulo, but i think he has defensive upside to be one of the best in the league.

Probably he'll have to transition to a wing defender like a Kawhi. He doesn't have the size to be an AD like rim protector in the pros.

It's kind of like Shane Battier. Battier at Duke was a full time PF and a rim protector who got 2 bpg. In the pros, he transitioned into a wing defender.

[FrodoBaggins]

Duke's Cooper Flagg becomes 4th freshman to win Wooden Award

https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/44545818/duke-cooper-flagg-becomes-4th-freshman-win-wooden-award

Flagg is the first freshman to win the Wooden Award since Duke's Zion Williamson in 2019. The other freshmen to win it are Kentucky's Anthony Davis in 2012 and Texas' Kevin Durant in 2007.

The men's John R. Wooden Award has been given out every year since 1977, starting with UCLA star Marques Johnson. Purdue's Zach Edey won it in each of the past two years, becoming only the second men's player to win the award twice, joining Ralph Sampson (1982, 1983).

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[The Master]

Probably he'll have to transition to a wing defender like a Kawhi. He doesn't have the size to be an AD like rim protector in the pros.

It's kind of like Shane Battier. Battier at Duke was a full time PF and a rim protector who got 2 bpg. In the pros, he transitioned into a wing defender.

Battier was playing in different times though, right now it is a standard to play with 4-out lineups - Flagg's defensive role will be actually rather similar to LeBron's (off-ball defender great in reading plays, providing secondary rim protection, strong individual defender being able to switch everything - he's not as great as an athlete, but he has amazing physical tools and bball IQ to play as a defensive playmaker). He doesn't need to be AD-like rim protector to be All-NBA D-calibre of defensive player.

[FrodoBaggins]

Flagg could very well have Draymond-like rim protection as a versatile FWD who can play center in a pinch. He has all the tools to do so, including a robust frame with natural strength that should allow him to get up to 235-240 like Aaron Gordon. I wouldn't get too caught up in blocks per game; Green and Giannis have very strong DFG% within 6 feet over their careers despite lower bpg. Jalen Williams is another one.