CHARLOTTE, N.C. — One of the highlights of Cooper Flagg’s rookie season so far was his offensive outburst against the Charlotte Hornets on Jan. 29. That night, the Dallas Mavericks rookie scored 49 points — the most by a teenager in NBA history.
Although the Mavericks narrowly lost the game, Flagg was so impressive that his former college teammate at Duke, Kon Knueppel, admitted afterward that Flagg might have gained the upper hand in their Rookie of the Year race.
“I think he might jump me,” Knueppel said postgame.
Since then, the Mavericks’ slide down the Western Conference standings has continued, and Flagg has spent the last three weeks recovering from a left foot sprain. On Tuesday, Flagg missed an eighth straight game as Dallas lost to Charlotte 117-90 to begin a six-game road trip.
Knueppel, who scored 13 points in the Hornets’ win, has now played 12 more games than Flagg. Knueppel’s availability and strong play for the surging Hornets — now 20-9 since Jan. 1 — has made the possibility of beating Flagg for the Rookie of the Year award start to feel real.
“I don’t even think it’s close,” Hornets coach Charles Lee said. “(Kon) probably would be mad at me for saying something like that, because he just wants to focus on our team winning games and impacting games any way he possibly can.”
Last week, Knueppel set the NBA rookie record for 3s made in a season with 22 games remaining. A 44 percent 3-point shooter, Knueppel has been the most productive 3-point shooter not only among rookies, but also in the entire NBA. His 212 made 3-pointers are 15 more than the next-closest player, Tyrese Maxey of the Philadelphia 76ers.
Knueppel isn’t merely a floor-stretcher, either. He’s shooting 56 percent on 2-point shots and ranks fourth on the Hornets in rebounding and assists.
Lee credits Knueppel’s upbringing for his mature game. As a kid, Knueppel’s father — also named Kon — had his son join him for pickup games playing against grown men.
“Going to the men’s league with his dad and having to fit in on the court and not get kicked off,” Lee said. “When you are that young, you just have to figure out how to fit in. How do I stay competitive?”
If Knueppel has regained the upper hand in the Rookie of the Year race, there is still time for Flagg to get it back. Flagg went through a light on-court workout before Tuesday’s game. Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said he anticipates Flagg playing in a “game or two” on the team’s road trip, which includes stops against the Orlando Magic, Boston Celtics, Toronto Raptors, Atlanta Hawks and Memphis Grizzlies.
In the 49 games Flagg has played, he is averaging 20.4 points, 6.6 rebounds, 4.1 assists, 1.2 steals and 0.8 blocks. He is already a two-way force, and the Mavericks have heavily relied on him all season in crunch time. (Flagg ranks 12th in the NBA in “clutch” scoring among all players.)
The Mavericks’ initial hope was that Flagg wouldn’t have to carry such a big burden, but the lack of ballhandling on the roster and the failed Anthony Davis experiment have forced Flagg to have more responsibility than any rookie in the league.
“I think we all know Coop’s a special player,” Mavericks forward P.J. Washington said. “He’s been doing his thing all year. Obviously, when he gets back, he’s going to do the same thing. He’s going to continue to be special. We need him, and it shows, but him being his age and doing what he’s doing, we don’’t really see too many guys doing that. It’s no question.”
Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd was involved in a closely contested Rookie of the Year race more than 30 years ago. In 1995, Kidd and then-Detroit Pistons forward Grant Hill received the same number of first-place votes and ultimately shared the Rookie of the Year award.
“I think Grant was the favorite the whole year,” Kidd said. “I got lucky at the end in March and April — played at a high level. Since then, they have changed the rule of voting, so there won’t be a tie.”
As Kidd said, the way votes are tallied has changed, which means there’s little chance Knueppel and Flagg could share the award. The last quarter of the regular season will determine which of the former Duke teammates wins it.
“I think when you talk about Coop and Knueppel, they play the game the right way,” Kidd said. “Cooper and Knueppel are head of the class. It’s going to be interesting to see who wins Rookie of the Year.”
