Former Duke Blue Devils star Cooper Flagg has drawn some strong words from his new head coach.
When Cooper Flagg began his lone season with the Duke Blue Devils, everyone knew that he would be a one-and-done star. That ended up being the case.
After just one season with the Blue Devils, Flagg took his talents to the NBA. He was selected by the Dallas Mavericks with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.
During his rookie season with the Mavericks, Flagg did not disappoint. He ended up playing in 70 regular season games. Flagg averaged 21 points per game to go alon gwith 6.7 rebounds, 4.5 assist, 1.2 steals, and 0.9 blocks, while also shooting 46.8 percent from the floor and 29.5 percent from three-point range.
Putting up that kind of production at 19 years old was impressive. Flagg has a chance to become one of the NBA's biggest stars over the next couple of years.
Entering the 2026-27 NBA campaign with Dallas, Flagg has a new head coach. After the Mavericks chose to part ways with Jason Kidd, they went out and hired former Michigan head coach Dusty May to replace him.
May recently spoke out with strong words about Flagg's talent and potential.
“With Coop, it’s just continuing to add to his game,” May said. “There’s a real responsibility to make sure he becomes the absolute best he can be. And when you have the drive, the competitive spirit, and then the versatility as a player that he has, the sky’s the limit.”
He continued on, showering the second-year forward with more praise.
“To be 19 years old and to have all of this thrown at him like he has, it’s a real testament to his maturity and the people that surround him to keep him grounded, because he’s a normal guy,” May said. “But at every level of basketball he’s impacted winning at the highest level, and so that’s what we expect him to do here, whatever the game requires.”
Finally, May also revealed what makes Flagg such a special and unique player.
“I think he’s so unique,” May said. “He could get 10 assists, 15 assists. He could get 10 or 15 rebounds, and then obviously we all know he can score the ball in a number of ways. So it’s going to be fun to be a part of his journey.”
Flagg will be facing sky-high expectations this year. After such a strong rookie season, he will need to perform at a very high level in order to live up to the hype.
Dallas is set to open the 2026-27 season on October 21 with a road matchup against the Houston Rockets. Duke fans will watch closely and root Flagg on as he tries to work his way into NBA superstar status.
