Cooper Flagg's Rookie of the Year Win Was One of Closest in NBA History

Dallas Mavericks star rookie Cooper Flagg took home the 2026 NBA Rookie of the Year award, becoming just the third player in franchise history to do so, joining Luka Doncic in 2019 and Jason Kidd in 1994 (technically, he tied for first).

This ended weeks and months of speculation, as Flagg was in a heated contest with his former Duke teammate and roommate, Kon Knueppel, who also had an outstanding season for the Charlotte Hornets. Flagg had the better statistical output, but Knueppel had a historic season for a team that was winning more games, even if they missed the playoffs, too.

The NBA released the voting breakdown soon after the award was announced on Peacock, and it was an extremely tight race, which was to be expected.

Flagg had 412 total points to Knueppel's 386. Both players appeared on all 100 ballots, with Flagg collecting 56 first-place votes and 44 second-place votes. Knueppel had 44 first-place votes, 55 second-place votes, and, somehow, one third-place vote, as one player voted VJ Edgecombe to finish second. First-place votes were worth five points, second-place votes were worth three points, and third-place votes were worth one point.

It's the second-smallest gap since the current voting format began in 2002-03, as the 2021-22 finish between Scottie Barnes and Evan Mobley was just 15 points. This gap ended up being 26 points.

A global media panel of 100 voters selected the 2025-26 Kia NBA Rookie of the Year.

The 26-point gap between the top two finishers is the second smallest since the current voting format began in 2002-03, behind only a 15-point gap in 2021-22.

Complete voting results ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/LFW4a0m6g5
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) April 27, 2026

Cooper Flagg May Have Received Boost From Poor Play-In Game Showing From Kon Knueppel

In most cases, ballots are handed to voters following the regular season and before any postseason action. That was different this year, as Luka Doncic, Cade Cunningham, and Anthony Edwards filed for appeals to be eligible for the 65-game rule for extraordinary circumstances. They wanted to be eligible for All-NBA teams and other honors, but it took a little time to settle those.

While they were being settled and before ballots were sent out, Kon Knueppel played in a Play-In Tournament game, and he was awful, scoring just 6 points on 2/12 shooting. He was benched down the stretch and didn't play at all in overtime. For a game the Hornets won by 1 point, he was a -20.

Even if postseason games weren't supposed to factor into voting, it'd be more surprising if that game didn't leave an impression on the minds of voters. Most of the support for Knueppel came because he was impacting winning more, but in a must-win game, he was the biggest hindrance to the team.

In the end, the right person won no matter what. Cooper Flagg had a historic season and deserved to be recognized for it. It's not often we get Rookie of the Year battles like this.

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