4 takeaways from the Globe profile of Maine’s Cooper Flagg, the nation’s top hoops prospect
Jayson Tatum says Flagg is ahead of where he was at the same age, plus a few more things to know.
Cooper Flagg is the No. 1 college basketball prospect in America for the Class of 2024, according to ESPN.
He’s also a New England native, hailing from Maine.
The 6-foot-9 forward has committed to play college basketball at Jayson Tatum’s alma mater, Duke University, next year.
The Globe’s Chad Finn spoke with Flagg, Flagg’s family, and Tatum among others for a lengthy profile on the 17-year-old star.
Here are four takeaways from Finn’s piece.
An assist from Brian Scalabrine helped showcase Flagg’s talents.
Flagg’s hometown of Newport, Maine has a population of around 3,200 people, and it didn’t take long for Flagg to take over the basketball scene there.
Flagg, who has been dunking since the seventh grade, led Nokomis Regional High School to it’s first state championship as a 15-year-old freshman.
That year, he was the youngest player invited to USA Basketball Men’s Junior National Team minicamp, in part because former Celtic Brian Scalabrine vouched for him after seeing Flagg play in pickup games.
“They were kind of like, ‘Yeah, we’ll invite him, but he’s probably not going to make this team. He’s 15,’” Scalabrine said.
Despite being two years younger than his teammates, Flagg emerged as the team’s “best player,” Finn wrote. He posted a 10-point, 17-rebound double-double in the World Cup championship game against Spain.
By the time the next school year rolled around, Flagg was ranked among the top-three players in the country for his class.
Jayson Tatum admits ‘he’s probably ahead of me.’
Flagg, who now plays high school basketball at Montverde Academy in Florida, is a 6-foot-9 forward who is heading to Duke next year.
He is ranked higher than fellow 6-foot-9 forward Tatum was heading into college. Tatum finished No. 3 overall for the class of 2016.
“He’s probably ahead of me [at this age],” Tatum said. “I wasn’t nearly as athletic when I got into college. It took me a little bit longer.”
“I just like how he had an edge about him, a toughness,” Tatum added. “He was going at guys and trying to go at the best players and trying to block shots. I just loved how he competed.”
The ’86 Celtics were a source of inspiration.
Despite being born 20 years after the 1985-86 Celtics bested the Rockets in a six-game series to claim the franchise’s 16th championship, Flagg has seen plenty of their tape.
His mother, who grew up a Celtics fan and kept a Danny Ainge figurine in her desk in her fifth grade desk, would play highlights of the ’86 Celtics in their van on long trips.
“At first, she had to make us [watch],” Flagg said. “But then it just became kind of standard in our car. That’s the team everybody in Boston, for sure — everybody in New England — is going to say is their favorite of all time.”
Earl Anderson, who coached Flagg at Nokomis, said the prized prospect has a Bird-like knack for making the players around him better.
Watching those Celtics highlights may have paid off, Anderson said.
“That’s got to be part of it,” Anderson said. “You may be right.”
Finn’s take on Flagg’s game: ‘Like a young [Kevin] Garnett’
While others have brought up Bird as a comparison for Flagg, Finn says his game is closer to Kevin Garnett’s.
“Flagg’s skill set is more comparable to another Celtics champion,” Finn wrote. “Kevin Garnett (whom Flagg himself has cited as an influence). Like a young Garnett, he plays with an endless reservoir of energy on both ends of the court.”
Finn saw Flagg’s Montverde team take on Washington D.C.’s Gonzaga College High School in Portland earlier this month. Flagg had 23 points, 10 rebounds, and eight blocked shots. Montverde won by 38 points.
“From the press box high above the court, I scribble my impressions in my notepad: It’s all true. All of it,” Finn wrote. “Plays way above the rim. Relentless on defense. Every opposing shooter is thinking about him even if he isn’t near. Selfless, excellent passer. Shot needs some polish, but by all accounts has come a long way. He’s going to be the best player on winning teams.”
You can read the full Boston Globe Magazine profile of Cooper Flagg here.
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