2025 NBA Draft’s potential #1 pick, Cooper Flagg, recently signed a shoe endorsement deal with New Balance. Flagg, who will play for the Duke Blue Devils during the 2024-25 NCAA season, made a huge splash recently by choosing the brand over Nike. In an interaction with ESPN, the Duke-bound athlete revealed why New Balance hits close to home for him.
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New Balance has its roots in the New England region where the state of Maine is situated. Flagg was born and raised in Maine’s sparsely populated town of Newport.
New Balance has three of its six factories in Flagg’s home state. Its ever-expanding Skowhegan manufacturing unit is just 25 miles away from Flagg’s childhood home in Newport.
The 6’9” forward referred to the brand as a ‘family company’. He reminisced how his mother Kelly Flagg used to trust NB for the family’s annual back-to-school shopping.
Therefore, the familiarity with the brand was pivotal in his decision to sign with them. He told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, “The connection with New Balance as a family company and a company with Maine roots means a lot to me. That makes this really different and special.”
“My mom used to go to the tent sale for back-to-school shopping there when we were kids. That really aligns the brand with my roots. It’s a perfect fit,” Flagg added.
The 17-year-old’s signing with Nike has been termed as “significant” by ESPN. The former Monteverde Academy athlete had donned Nike shoes throughout his high-school career. He was a regular fixture in Nike’s EYBL circuit. Moreover, Duke is considered the bastion of Nike athletes.
But for Flagg, being close to his roots took precedence over the Duke tradition.
The youngster has been dubbed as a generational talent. He grabbed a lot of attention while playing against the stacked Team USA headed for the Paris Olympics.
Cooper was also too good for the Nike EYBL competition. His 2023 Nike Peach Jam performances put the spotlight on him. During one of the games, he put up 38 points, 16 rebounds, 11 blocks, and 6 assists. NBA draft analyst Jonathan Wasserman was mesmerized by this performance.
He tweeted, “Can’t remember watching a player dominate more facets of a single game the way Cooper Flagg just did… Best prospect in HS. This was superhero stuff.”
The 6’9” forward has shown impressive progress since then, especially when it comes to his shooting mechanics. He was the only teenager who was invited to Team USA’s training camp before the 2024 Paris Olympics. The Forward displayed his two-way prowess throughout the camp and earned huge respect from elite NBA athletes.
His unfazed attitude among NBA superstars during the pre-Olympic camp showed his killer instinct. While his three-point shooting is a work in progress, if he does grow at the current rate, he can be a two-way force like Oklahoma City Thunder’s Chet Holmgren.
