Sports
Kevin Love praises Maine’s Cooper Flagg: ‘He will translate’ to college basketball and beyond – Boston.com
By Khari Thompson
Cooper Flagg made some noise at Team USA practice earlier this week when video clips of him hitting a turnaround jumper over Jrue Holiday and swishing a 3-pointer over Anthony Davis surfaced.
The 17-year-old Maine native has big expectations as he heads to Duke for his freshman year of college next fall. He’s the No. 1 player in the country in his class, and he was named Gatorade Best Male Player of the Year at the ESPY awards on Thursday.
Flagg received some praise from Miami Heat forward Kevin Love, who won the award back in 2007.
“Oh, he will translate,” Love told CBS Sports. “Just playing against future Hall of Famers, some of the guys who are some of the greatest players of all time and the most decorated players of this generation and certainly the best. He’s very poised for his age.
“Speaking of his demeanor, he studies the game. You can tell he has great people around him, great teammates that he cares for and that helps you and translates in any situation. That’s the beauty of this award and it’s not just a basketball award. It’s in the community, it’s something that’s only going to help him in Duke and beyond.”
Flagg demonstrated his scoring ability during the scrimmage against Team USA, but his defensive versatility also stands out to Love. The 6-foot-9 forward can also defend guards and bigs.
“For us, it was power forwards, small forwards and point guards,” Love said. “Now, guys are just like switching 1-through-5 and do everything and play every position. People like to say the word ‘unicorn’ but you’re seeing that. The game is positionless, and we didn’t have that in the past. I think that’s a beautiful thing. It speaks to the skill work. You’re never too good to not have to work on your skills and work on literally everything.
Flagg will host a basketball camp at University of Maine next month, according to CBS Sports, and he said giving back to his home state is important to him.
“It means everything to me,” Flagg said. “Coming from a small town, knowing everybody. Having a very tight circle. We call it our village back home. Just having that support system from a young age. Being tight-knit, close to all my people has helped my people through this process so much, so I’m really excited to go home and do something for the younger generation and pay it back. I’m excited for the opportunity to be home for a little bit.”
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