Cooper Flagg had a notable rookie season with the Dallas Mavericks, drawing comparisons to LeBron James' rookie season with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Flagg, the second-youngest No. 1 overall pick in NBA history, matched several early-career records set by James.
Comparing Cooper Flagg's rookie season with Mavs to LeBron James' rookie season with Cavs originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Cooper Flagg's name came up in the context of LeBron James a lot during his rookie season with the Dallas Mavericks.
Flagg was the second-youngest player ever selected No. 1 overall in the NBA Draft, behind just James in 2003 by the Cleveland Cavaliers. That meant many of the early-career NBA records Flagg was matching or setting were first set by James a couple of decades ago.
The Mavs' season ended Sunday with the regular season finale, so it's a good time to compare.
None of this is to say Flagg will end up like James, but the rookie from Duke got off to a pretty great start.
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This was neck and neck. Flagg averaged 21.0 points per game as a rookie, while James was at 20.9 points per game.
Flagg shot 46.8% from the floor, 29.5% from 3 and 82.7% from the line.
James shot 41.7% from the floor, 29.0% from 3 and 75.4% from the line.
Flagg takes this category.
He averaged 6.7 rebounds per game as a rookie, while James averaged 5.5.
LeBron takes this, but maybe not by as much as you'd expect.
James put up 5.9 assists per game as a rookie. Flagg was at 4.5.
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LeBron outdid Flagg in steals, averaging 1.6 to Flagg's 1.2 per game.
Flagg won in blocks, 0.9 to 0.7 per game.
Both came in to less than ideal situations. LeBron's Cavs went 35-47 in his rookie season, while Flagg's Mavs went 26-56.
Based on how things went from there for James, Flagg's future appears very bright.
Cooper Flagg's rookie season with the Mavericks is being compared to LeBron James' rookie season due to similar early-career achievements and records.
During his rookie season, Cooper Flagg matched or set several early-career NBA records that were previously established by LeBron James.
LeBron James is the youngest player ever selected No. 1 overall in the NBA Draft, with Cooper Flagg being the second-youngest.
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