In March of this year, Cooper Flagg’s college coach, Chris Duhon, shared some interesting insights about the projected number one prospect.
The head coach of Duke and former NBA player was asked his opinion on which current Duke prospect he thinks has NBA star potential, and what part of their game excites him the most.
“Obviously Cooper Flagg. He’s just a great all-around player, and he competes at a high level. He wants to be coached, and he’s going to continue to get better and better.”
“I wouldn’t sleep on Kon Knueppel either. If put with the right team and coach at the next level, the future is bright for him as well,” Duhon said, also mentioning the currently projected number eight pick, who could be an interesting option for a lot of teams, as well.
Duhon sees both prospects as high IQ players, something the Dallas Mavericks have valued highly in the past.
“The main thing is that they both have high basketball IQs. They don’t have to rely on their athleticism because they think and see the game fast. With their ability to stretch the floor, it gives them more space to be effective.”
The void in playmaking, elite vision and decision-making left by Luka Doncic on the Mavs means that Dallas could end up being a great spot for the 6’9 power forward.
The fact that most of this team is used to playing with a superstar who’s always a step ahead, could help open things up even more for Flagg from day one. There’s a good chance the game will get much simpler for Flagg on an NBA team used to Luka Doncic level IQ and vision.
If you then add another high IQ playmaker in Kyrie Irving, who unfortunately won’t be back until late next season, it may get really interesting in Dallas long term.
Another good fit for Cooper Flagg in Dallas is coach Jason Kidd. He’s known as a high IQ basketball player himself, and has always spoken highly of and seems to prefer playing guys with high IQs, who he can trust.
In the past, when a player has shown that he has a high basketball IQ in Dallas, Kidd has been quick to point it out and has often chosen to play certain players to close games. He clearly trusted some of these players - who may lack in other skills - because of their decision-making skills and understanding of the game (high IQ). An example is former Mav, now Laker, Maxi Kleber, who despite often being rusty and losing a lot of athleticism due to injuries, Kidd often picked to close tight games because of his high IQ.
The 18 year old from Maine has been compared to Jalen Johnson and Kevin Garnett, but he reminds Duhon of a certain Dallas native:
“Flagg reminds me of Grant Hill but with a better 3-point shot and Knueppel reminds me of a stronger JJ Redick.”
With all this in mind, it seems that a player like Cooper Flagg would fit in quite seamlessly in the culture in Dallas. Add to that his elite defensive talent, as well as developing into an offensive juggernaut able to both create for himself, pass the ball at a high level and shoot from a distance, it’s hard to see any downsides to Flagg in Dallas, if they manage to surround him with the right people long term.
And if they end up drafting him on June 25, of course.
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