Those NBA fans who go by team record while searching for a game to watch probably would have passed over last night’s contest between the Hornets and Mavericks. A big mistake! They would have missed out on a battle royale between the top two contenders for Rookie of the Year, who also happen to be former college teammates and roommates.
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Kon Knueppel and Cooper Flagg had themselves a game last night. Flagg, the No. 1 overall pick in June’s draft, scored 49 points in scarily efficient fashion. He shot 20-29 from the field, making all six of his free throws. Sadly for Flagg and the Mavs, it wasn’t enough. Knueppel poured in 34 for the suddenly red-hot Hornets, winners now of five straight.
Knueppel is already one of the best long-range marksmen in the league. He proved it again last night by draining 8-12 from deep. Only Steph Curry and Donovan Mitchell have made more 3s than he has this season.
When Flagg knocked down a game-tying 3 with just over 30 seconds left, Knueppel answered by hitting two clutch free throws with 4.1 seconds to go. Flagg’s jumper at the buzzer was no good, and the Hornets got the win. After the game, Flagg was asked about going against his former Duke roommate, and he had nothing but praise for his good friend.
“Obviously, I’m confident in what I can do, but he’s a great player as well,” said Flagg. “I know him better than pretty much anybody … I know what he’s capable of and what he’s able to do out there on the court. He’s a special guy, special player, and he has incredible character.”
The Hornets are still 2.5 games out of the final play-in spot in the East. But they’re playing so well that Charles Barkley guaranteed last night that they would make it. Their point differential is better than the three teams ahead of them, and they’ve put up some extremely impressive wins this month. They’ve beaten the Thunder, Nuggets, Lakers, and the Jazz on the road by a combined 123 points.
Both Knueppel and Flagg put up their career highs in points in this one. And just as Flagg ended up complimenting him in the postgame press conference, Knueppel had nothing but good things to say about him as well.
“Cooper, he played like the best player we’ve played all season,” said Knueppel. “He just had a heck of a game. He’s a heck of a player, and he’s gonna have a heck of a career.”
There are so many storylines happening in the NBA right now. However, a rookie rivalry between two friends in which both players are clearly on their way to stardom is moving up the list of things that fans should be paying attention to. The final couple of months of this Rookie of the Year race are going to be a lot of fun.
