Jeff Teague Austin Reaves Kon Knueppel Cooper Flagg best white American NBA Player
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LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - NOVEMBER 25: Austin Reaves #15 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts for a LA Clippers foul during the first half at Crypto.com Arena on November 25, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
Austin Reaves of the Los Angeles Lakers has been one of the best stories in the NBA over the past few years, as playing with LeBron James and now Luka Doncic, he went from an undrafted guard to now a player in line to earn a $241 max contract extension.
Reaves has turned into the Lakers’ second option on offense, behind Doncic but ahead of James in the pecking order, and as he’s averaging a career-high in scoring, the 26-year-old has answered the call by JJ Redick in his increased role.
However, despite Reaves playing at an All-Star and even a potential All-NBA level to begin the season, before then going down with an injury, the Lakers’ guard was recently dissed by a former NBA champion.
NBA Champ Jeff Teague Makes Feelings Clear On Austin Reaves
Jeff Teague Austin Reaves Kon Knueppel Cooper Flagg best white American NBA Player
GettyAustin Reaves #15 of the Los Angeles Lakers points during the first half of the basketball game against the Charlotte Hornets at Spectrum Center on November 10, 2025 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by David Jensen/Getty Images)
Speaking on his podcast, Club 520, ex-NBA player and champion with the Milwaukee Bucks, Jeff Teague, said that he believes Kon Knueppel of the Charlotte Hornets is the best white American player in the NBA, over both Reaves and Cooper Flagg of the Dallas Mavericks.
While both Knueppel and Flagg are still rookies, the Hornet’s wing has set multiple three-point records in his first season, which was enough for Teague to dub him with the distinct honor, in his eyes at least.
“(Kon Knueppel) is arguably the best White American Basketball player in the league,” Teague said. “And I would probably take him over Austin Reaves. Cooper Flagg is good but he’s not like this. He’s not efficient like (Knueppel).”
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Jeff Teague:
“Kon Knueppel is arguably the best White American Basketball player in the league. I would take him over Austin Reaves. Cooper Flagg is good but he’s not like this.”
(via @club520podcast, h/t @NBA__Courtside)
While controversial in its own right, the debate of who the best white American NBA player has been argument that, despite not holding any real weight, continues to be a topic discussed around the league.
Teague further discussed Knueppel’s efficiency, and claimed that if he was in Flagg’s role on the Mavericks, the team would be seeing a lot more success than they are now.
Still, with Reaves’ stats and resume compared to the two rookies, while Teague’s argument might be true in a few years when Knueppel and Flagg have developed a bit more, it feels like a stretch to say either is better than the starting shooting guard for the Lakers.
Austin Reaves vs. Kon Knueppel vs. Cooper Flagg Stat Comparison
But for the sake of the argument, looking at the stats for Reaves, Knueppel, and Flagg this season could prove to be a fun experiment.
Austin Reaves stats: 23.6 points, 4.7 rebounds, 5.6 assists, 1.1 steals on 49.2/36.1/87.1 shooting splits in 47 games.
Kon Knueppel stats: 19.1 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 0.7 steals on 48.9/43.5/86.3 shooting splits in 72 games.
Cooper Flagg stats: 20.4 points, 6.6 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 1.1 steals on 47.3/28.7/81.1 shooting splits in 61 games.
Knueppel recently broke the record for the youngest player to hit 250 three-pointers in a career, and it’s just one of a few three-point records he’s set in his rookie season.
Still, Reaves has the resume and is in line to get a projected five-year, $240 million contract extension in free agency this offseason. But while the two rookies can’t earn a deal like that at this point in their careers, that could be proven a moot point. Still, Reaves has playoff success and is more proven in the league right now.
Interestingly enough, Reaves did only average 7.3 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.8 assists in his rookie season with the Lakers, but that’s not the argument Teague made.
Knueppel and Flagg are proving to be great players in the NBA, but it’s fair to say they still sit behind Reaves for the time being.
Knueppel is currently favored over Flagg to win the Rookie of the Year award this season.