Dallas Mavericks coach Jason Kidd continues to heap praise on his team’s rookie Cooper Flagg. Exactly a week go, after the Mavs beat the Portland Trail Blazers, 100-93, Kidd said that Flagg should be the “clear-cut” winner of the NBA Rookie of the Year (ROY) award.
Kidd sustained his push for Flagg to earn the ROY after the 6-foot-9 forward’s dazzling performance on Friday against the Orlando Magic. The No. 1 pick of the 2025 draft erupted for a career-high 51 points on 19-for-30 shooting, including 6-of-9 from deep.
In the postgame interview, Jason Kidd doubled down on Cooper Flagg’s ROY campaign (via Noah Weber):
“He should be Rookie of the Year. It’s unbelievable, the country is not watching the same thing we get to watch on a daily basis. The things that he’s done, he’s in rare air with the GOAT when you talk about MJ (Jordan) and what he did in his rookie year.”
There have been superlatives that coaches and fans have used on Cooper Flagg, but Kidd arguably surpassed them by using the legendary Michael Jordan for comparison.
Jordan was 21 when he was named the 1985 NBA Rookie of the Year. In MJ’s first season in the pros, he averaged 28.2 points, 6.5 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 2.4 steals per game. Hakeem Olajuwon finished a distant second behind Jordan. The then-Chicago Bulls rookie was so good that he placed No. 6 in the MVP voting.
Cooper Flagg, who doesn’t turn 20 until December, is averaging 20.3 ppg, 6.6 rpg and 4.5 apg. Kidd has been so impressed that he couldn’t help but compare the do-it-all forward to what Jordan did in MJ’s rookie campaign.
Jason Kidd Said Mavericks Are Making Cooper Flagg’s Roy Campaign “Top Priority”
Last week, Jason Kidd began his strongest endorsement of Cooper Flagg to win the ROY. After the win against the Blazers, Kidd responded when asked about the Mavericks’ stance in the race for the best first-year player in the NBA this season:
“Yeah, it’s a big priority. It’s a big award – you’re only a rookie once. … He’s having a historic year. When you put up his numbers against past rookies who have won, it’s clear-cut – it’s not even close. Sometimes voting can be influenced differently – popularity, trends – but strictly based on numbers, Cooper is as good as anybody.”
Although Kidd sees the ROY battle as a one-horse race, analysts disagree with him.
On Thursday, NBA.com and ESPN released their latest rookie rankings. On both sites, Kon Knueppel, Flagg’s former Duke teammate, is the clear leader.
The season and the race aren’t over yet, giving Flagg some more room to make his case as the ROY. Following his 51-point explosion, Kidd is ensuring the limelight is on his do-it-all forward.
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