Regardless, this year’s Rookie of the Year race is pretty unusual, as last year’s two leading candidates were teammates: former Blue Devils Con Knuppel and Cooper Flagg.
For much of the season, as the Charlotte Hornets began to plan around their rookie, Knuupel’s surprisingly mature game kept him ahead of Flagg.
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Meanwhile, Flagg, who was asked to play point guard, struggled even more. It wasn’t until the Dallas Mavericks started asking less of him that he started to excel. Then he started showing how unusual he was.
Like Knuppel, Flagg has matured significantly for a rookie and is really starting to hit his stride.
That’s not to say Knupel is slacking off. At the beginning of the season, he looked like a great complementary player, but now his game is more aggressive. At one point, someone posted that all of his points were via assists, to which we were like: So what? These scores are no less than unassisted scores.
It’s an interesting point though, as of late, Knuupel has become more aggressive and you look like he’s getting guys to the basket more often. Like Luka Doncic, he will never be the fastest guy in the league, but also like Doncic, he often outsmarts his defender with surprising ease.
Whatever happens, it’s pretty amazing to watch two former roommates compete for the most prestigious award a rookie can win.
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