Why Kevin Durant Keeps Getting Linked to Cooper Flagg

After the Mavericks first preseason game in Macao, China, last Friday against the Houston Rockets, he spoke about Kevin Durant providing some inspiration for him.

“Yeah, I think so. Just being comfortable getting to my spots, and obviously somebody like KD, I feel like I’ve learned a lot from him just playing against him over the years,” Flagg said.

“Just getting to your spots and playing at a slow pace. So that’s definitely something I worked on, the spots that I like to get to on the court.”

The Mavericks would go on to lose 135-117, Flagg would finish with 19 points and six rebounds on 7-of-14 shooting in 19 minutes of play.

During the postgame of the second preseason game, Kyrie Irving was asked to compare Kevin Durant and LeBron James, as noted in this article by OnSI's Eric Jay Santos.

"I give my respect to KD and Bron, they are in their own separate categories and trajectories in their careers. But I would say this: I think Coop falls in line in terms of having that competitive nature at a very young age to be able to lead a team, be a complementary piece, but also lead the team, statistical categories, and I love that he is a two-way player".

Flagg finished with 14 points, four rebounds, seven assists in 25 minutes of play for the Mavericks, while Irving finished with 17 points, two rebounds, and three assists in 22 minutes. The Mavericks went on to win Sunday’s game, 132-115 to even their preseason record at one and one.

In a recent interview with Mark Followill, the television play-by-play announcer for the Dallas Mavericks, there was focus on Cooper being aware of the history when it comes to the game of basketball.

“I think the best players have always shown that they’re very self-aware of the history of the game. When they look for examples of how to achieve what they think they’re capable of achieving, they look right over there at the guy who’s done it. That’s the example. That’s the work ethic. That’s how you go about your business.

“I think that’s true across all sports. There may be an example of one, but I’ve never really seen a good player who came in and said, ‘Well, I’m not trying to learn from veterans and emulate the skills and habits of other great players.’ When you’re young, you’re a sponge, which is what you should be. So, I think it’s great that Cooper’s learning from KD and all of the league’s greats," Followill shared with OnSI.

“I think it’s very, very clear from the way he was raised and the stories about his background. They loved the Boston Celtics, and his mom would put him in the car, and they’d make the long drives to club games and practices. He’d be watching tapes of the Larry Bird Celtics of the 1980s in the car with his mom and learning important components of how to play winning basketball at a very young age.

“If that’s somebody he’s going to look up to, emulate and learn a lot from, well, Kevin Durant is fifth in NBA history in scoring, he’s an MVP and he’s a multi-time champion. He’s someone who also respects the history of the game and has a great understanding of it. So, there’s not a better guy for Cooper Flagg to follow in the footsteps of and learn from, to the degree that he can. They’re not teammates, so it’s a little bit different, but from a distance, he can learn everything he can and soak up what he can from a guy like Kevin Durant. That’s awesome to hear. That’s obviously part of his toolbox as he continues to grow as a player.”

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