Cooper Flagg tops Kon Knueppel for ROY honors in tight race

Teenage sensation Cooper Flagg was named NBA Rookie of the Year on Monday, narrowly defeating his former Duke roommate Kon Knueppel for the honor.

Flagg edged Knueppel by 26 points in the voting by a panel of 100 media members. Flagg received 56 first-place votes, with the rest going to Knueppel. Flagg had 44 second-place votes, while Knueppel received 55 second-place votes and one third place.

The 19-year-old Flagg became the second-youngest player to win the award, behind only LeBron James.

“I see the games every night. I can check the box scores,” Flagg said when asked how close of an eye he kept on Knueppel. “I think also I was watching Kon just because that’s one of my brothers.

“We had such a good connection, and we’re gonna be there for each other for the rest of our lives. I was watching him as a fan, as well, but there was obviously that competition at the same 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 points) 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 move motivated by creating financial flexibility for a long-term build around 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 also had six games with at least 30 points, five rebounds and five assists, which was one more such game than the rest of the rookie class combined.