Cooper Flagg is the best NBA prospect since Michael Jordan

[Rocko]

I watched Cooper dropped what looked like an effortless 30 pt game against Wemby and the Spurs. The last 4 or 5 games he’s been on an amazing heater. The crazy thing is he’s only 18 years old and is dominating. He’s got a great handle and even better footwork. And he plays defense too. All he needs to do is improve his shooting. He’s actually exceeded his hype coming in to the draft. The dude is for real.

 

[Blaster]

He is good but is no Michael Jordan.

 

[rightwinger]

He is good but is no Michael Jordan.

More like a Larry Bird?

 

[Rocko]

More like a Larry Bird?

Bird was never the athlete Flagg is, and Flagg isn’t the shooter Bird was, yet.

 

[Rocko]

 

[MarathonMike]

Give him some time. He is literally still a kid and one of the top 5 players in the NBA.

 

[Mr. Friscus]

I watched Cooper dropped what looked like an effortless 30 pt game against Wemby and the Spurs. The last 4 or 5 games he’s been on an amazing heater. The crazy thing is he’s only 18 years old and is dominating. He’s got a great handle and even better footwork. And he plays defense too. All he needs to do is improve his shooting. He’s actually exceeded his hype coming in to the draft. The dude is for real.

I'm sorry if I come across a bit condescending here, but this smells of some sort of ESPN "hot take" bid.. where people say something meant to stir things up. There's a couple of issues tied up in your claim:

First, What kind of "prospect" was MJ in the mid 80's? You can't look at how he ended up and brand him with it in his early years. Jordan was seen as a guy who could jump out of the gym, was explosive, a so-so mid range shooter. He wasn't alone in that diagnosis. Many guys come up and have similar traits, they just don't develop like Mike did.

Second, I think much of your praise for Flagg is warranted. It's exciting to see a rookie come into the NBA and make a splash. The real test is if they can continue to rise, or if they get figured out a bit.

Third, here's a related statement to my initial claim.. it's just too early to compare Flagg to any all-time player. To do so is just jumping the gun, and it's impossible to know. IMO I want to see what Flagg does the next 2 years. Give me 3 years and I'll be able to start to size up if this kid can continue to develop.

 

[Rocko]

I'm sorry if I come across a bit condescending here, but this smells of some sort of ESPN "hot take" bid.. where people say something meant to stir things up. There's a couple of issues tied up in your claim:

First, What kind of "prospect" was MJ in the mid 80's? You can't look at how he ended up and brand him with it in his early years. Jordan was seen as a guy who could jump out of the gym, was explosive, a so-so mid range shooter. He wasn't alone in that diagnosis. Many guys come up and have similar traits, they just don't develop like Mike did.

Second, I think much of your praise for Flagg is warranted. It's exciting to see a rookie come into the NBA and make a splash. The real test is if they can continue to rise, or if they get figured out a bit.

Third, here's a related statement to my initial claim.. it's just too early to compare Flagg to any all-time player. To do so is just jumping the gun, and it's impossible to know. IMO I want to see what Flagg does the next 2 years. Give me 3 years and I'll be able to start to size up if this kid can continue to develop.

I genuinely think Flagg is the best rookie since MJ. His skill level is amazing for someone his age. He might break the scoring record for a rookie. Dallas has an absolute stud. He’s playing Wemby again tonight at 6:00. To me that’s a must watch for basketball junkies.

 

[DukeU]

More like a Larry Bird?

Anybody who has seen Flagg play would never make that comparison.

Completely different styles.

 

[22lcidw]

I genuinely think Flagg is the best rookie since MJ. His skill level is amazing for someone his age. He might break the scoring record for a rookie. Dallas has an absolute stud. He’s playing Wemby again tonight at 6:00. To me that’s a must watch for basketball junkies.

Dallas does not deserve him. Perhaps the draft was fixed.