Cooper Flagg proud to represent Maine at Hoophall Classic: ‘It’s a great feeling’

SPRINGFIELD – When Montverde Academy ahead Cooper Flagg was requested if he is aware of of any NBA gamers from Maine, his dwelling state, he mentioned he wasn’t positive.

“I don’t assume there are any big-time names, however there is likely to be one or two floating round,” Flagg mentioned.

Maine has by no means produced an NBA All-Star participant. The state’s most efficient skilled participant to this point is the Miami Warmth’s Duncan Robinson, who was born in Maine however didn’t develop up there.

Flagg is barely a sophomore at Montverde Academy in Florida. Nonetheless, with how his sport has grown over the past 12 months, he’s wanting ahead to representing Maine nationally in faculty and past.

“Yeah, most positively,” Flagg mentioned when requested if he seems ahead to the potential of representing his dwelling state within the NBA. “I hope I can deliver that kind of factor to Maine, for positive.”

The final two years have been a whirlwind for the sophomore.

Final 12 months, he and his brother Ace had been freshmen on the Nokomis Regional Excessive College boy basketball workforce in Newport, Maine.

The duo led the college’s boys’ basketball program to its first-ever Class A state title of their lone season on the workforce. Cooper Flagg scored 22 factors and grabbed 16 rebounds within the title sport. He was named the Maine Gatorade Participant of the Yr on the finish of the season.

Following his breakout freshman 12 months, the brothers transferred to Montverde Academy to play for coach Kevin Boyle.

Boyle has put collectively a adorned resume throughout his time at Montverde and has coached NBA All-Stars like Ben Simmons, RJ Barrett, and Kyrie Irving.

Going from small-town Maine basketball to becoming a member of arguably the nation’s most proficient highschool basketball workforce is a troublesome transition, however Cooper Flagg has made it seamlessly.

The sophomore scored a game-high 21 factors, picked up 5 rebounds, 5 steals, and three assists in a win over La Lumiere (IN) on the Hoophall Traditional, 85-63, in Springfield on Saturday.

“He’s grown quite a bit,” Boyle mentioned about Cooper Flagg. “He’s beginning to get good at understanding when he ought to fade to the nook. He was a bit of uncooked to that early. At his age and with taking part in AAU, he may get it and go, and nobody was stopping him. Now he has athletes with dimension towards him. He’s a sophomore, however he’s progressing tremendously. He’s a terrific employee.”

Not many sophomores in highschool stand at 6-foot-8 like Flagg, however many gamers that develop to that top early have a tendency to not have good hand-eye coordination.

Flagg is an exception.

The sophomore performed level guard within the fourth quarter for Montverde, initiating the workforce’s offense on the high of its formation. On the defensive finish, every time the workforce threw on a full-court press, he picked up La Lumiere guards at full-court and ran with them.

“He’s a terrific athlete,” Boyle mentioned. “You possibly can work on athleticism, and a few folks get a bit of higher, however loads of that’s God-given. … Coming (into the workforce), he had ability, however he was extra of a giant child that might deal with and get to the rim. Now he’s extra of a real perimeter participant. … He can be a terrific multi-position participant on the NBA degree. He’ll guard loads of totally different folks.”

Flagg affected the sport at each degree on Saturday.

The sophomore had a game-high 10 factors on the finish of the primary quarter and made the play of the sport within the second quarter, slamming in a lob with two fingers for an alley-oop dunk off a baseline display screen.

His motion with out the ball was nearly as spectacular as his motion with it. Flagg stayed busy when he didn’t have the ball in his fingers, chopping by way of the paint and making fast, sensible passes when defenders collapsed on him.

Flagg mentioned after Saturday’s sport that he will get extra satisfaction from watching his teammates rating than watching himself rating, which is sweet more often than not however has additionally led to errors.

“Typically I fall an excessive amount of into that and belief my teammates a bit an excessive amount of,” Flagg mentioned. “My coaches have instructed me to belief myself, too.”

Flagg has sound reasoning for trusting his teammates.

Together with Flagg, Montverde Academy has 9 gamers in ESPN’s high 100 recruits in every class.

4 gamers are at present dedicated to schools. Monteverde’s Kwame Evans is dedicated to Oregon, Sean Stewart to Duke, Chris Johnson to Kansas, and Marvel Allen to Georgetown.

Flagg practices towards the workforce’s loaded roster nearly day by day.

“You get higher day by day,” Cooper Flagg mentioned. “Going towards that day by day pushes you. You be taught one thing new day by day.”

Flagg has not made a university resolution but. Nonetheless, the sophomore holds scholarships from Duke, Georgia, UCLA, West Virginia, Michigan, Maine, Iowa, Bryant, and Albany.

In line with ESPN, Flagg is the No. 2 recruit within the Class of 2025.

The sophomore has mentioned that his dream college was Duke, and he has been in contact with Blue Devils’ coach Jon Scheyer, however he’s wanting ahead to attending to know extra teaching staffs and applications sooner or later earlier than he decides.

“There are nonetheless so many different choices I wish to look into,” Flagg mentioned. “There’s loads of choices.”