Even before his Duke debut, high school sensation Cooper Flagg was already one of the best prospects. His one season with the Blue Devils didn’t end with the championship, yet his stock kept on rising. With the Mavericks now holding the number 1 pick in the upcoming draft, the Maine native’s next destination could truly be Dallas. As the reality of becoming a pro is less than a month away, the skepticism about the 18-year-old’s potential grows.
We already saw him dominate the stats with Duke, as he was the outright leader in five major categories. Yes, his exploits of 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.4 steals, and blocks per game. Yet, NBA champion and renowned defender Tony Allen shared a hot take. Allen doesn’t believe Flagg is a franchise-changing talent like Kevin Durant. This comment caused a debate of the highest order, as one can expect around any story regarding the consensus No. 1 pick. But this time, even the fans agreed with this notion.
“I ain’t seeing KD [Kevin Durant]. I’m just not seeing all that,” Allen continued on “The Chris Vernon Show“. “I’m seeing Andrei Kirilenko. That’s what I’m seeing. He’s going to be a one-time All-Star. I don’t see it, bro. I’m just not hyped on these Duke kids. He is nice, but his max-out potential is Andrei Kirilenko.” In case you didn’t know, Kirilenko played professional basketball from 1997 to 2015, primarily for the Utah Jazz between 2001 and 2011.
Popularly known as AK-47, Kirilenko was just 15 when he started playing in the Russian Basketball Super League. Soon, the call for the NBA followed, where he established his defensive game. Allen also added that Cooper Flagg could be a “nice” piece for an NBA team, but he isn’t sold on Flagg’s potential as an NBA superstar.
“I don’t think Cooper Flagg is going to turn your franchise around like that, and I’m serious.” The sentiment from the netizens also echoed serious doubts over the Maine native’s ability.
Ahead of the draft, concerns pile up for Cooper Flagg
Kirilenko, whom Allen compared Flagg to, made an All-Star team in 2004 and was a first-team All-Defensive selection in 2006. He played more than a decade in the NBA, mostly with the Utah Jazz. He was a late first-round pick who wound up averaging 11.8 points per game in his career. That’s why a comment read, “Thank you. No shade to AK47 at all but Flagg isn’t generational to me.” It’s not Allen who raised the issue about the Duke forward.
“Coop is nice. I’m very high on his game, (but) to me, he doesn’t do anything great. He just does a lot of shit very good.” This was not the only comment from Knicks legend Carmelo Anthony. He further added, Flagg must have a “skill set” and said the former Duke star lacks a “go-to” play. Agreeing to this, a fan wrote, “Harrison Barnes or Andrew Wiggins max. Great player, but he choked under the brightest lights.”
The loss in the NCAA tournament is a fact that Cooper Flagg will have to deal with. Tim Donnely, in the ESPN 99.9 The Fan podcast, highlighted the concern about the 6’9″ star that led to those losses. He referred to the fact that in all three games that Duke lost this season, Flagg committed some blunders, which could be a point of concern. Which led to a fan disagreeing with the hype “Bro I’ve been saying this for YEARS .”
Before Flagg, the hype around the number one pick in recent years was associated with Victor Wembanyama. But fans don’t think Flagg has that potential to match the French sensation. “He ain’t lying. Cooper Flagg will be a good second option but not a franchise player.” While another commented, “I agree that’s what I’m seeing too. I don’t see generational talent but a great player is in there. He’s not even better than Wemby to me.”
With any player’s potential comes a what-if question. Think Kwame Brown or the 2003 overall second pick, Darko Milicic. They couldn’t meet the expectations set for them. Similarly, look at LeBron James, Magic Johnson, Anthony Davis, and Kyrie Irving are a select few to justify their hype. Only time will tell on which spectrum Cooper Flagg ends his career.
The post Fans Are Already Against Cooper Flagg as Ex-NBA Star Declares Bold Claim About No.1 Draft Prospect appeared first on EssentiallySports.
