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Cooper Flagg Wins Rookie of the Year, Scores 50-Point Games

4/28/2026

Summary

Flagg Wins Rookie

Cooper Flagg won the 2025-26 NBA Rookie of the Year on April 27, 2026, with 56 first-place votes and 412 points, averaging 21.0 points in 70 games.
He posted 51- and 45-point games in April, becoming the youngest player and first teenager to score 50 points in a game.
Runner-up Kon Knueppel earned 44 votes and 386 points, led the league with 273 three-pointers and set the rookie record for three-point makes.

Summary

Miller Switches Vote

Ballots were delayed until after the play-in when Luka Doncic and Cade Cunningham won eligibility appeals because NBA permitted exceptions to its 65-game minimum rule, moving voting deadline past the play-in.
Kon Knueppel scored six points on 2-of-12 shooting in Charlotte’s 127-126 overtime win on April 14.
Reggie Miller switched his Rookie of the Year vote to Flagg after Knueppel’s poor play-in outings, prompting analysts to warn of recency bias favoring Flagg.

Summary

Flagg Rebuilds

The Mavericks finished 26-56, missed the playoffs and kept Kyrie Irving on the bench all season, while the Hornets improved to 44-38 and earned a play-in spot.
Dallas traded injured All-Star Anthony Davis to Washington, freeing cap space for a rebuild centered on Cooper Flagg.
Kon Knueppel led the league with 273 three-pointers at 42.5%.
Charlotte’s 25-win surge secured a play-in before losing to Orlando.

Summary

Flagg Sets Record

Tyrese Flagg set a rookie record as the youngest player with 10 assists in an NBA game.
He became the fifth former Duke Blue Devil to win Rookie of the Year, joining Paolo Banchero, Kyrie Irving, Elton Brand and Grant Hill.
Dallas framed its 26-56 season as a rebuild, citing Flagg’s production as the foundation for future playoff hopes while noting his media-driven rivalry with former Duke roommate Jaden Knueppel.

History

Historical Context

On June 29 1994 the NBA draft in Indianapolis selected Duke forward Grant Hill, who shared the 1994-95 Rookie of the Year award with Jason Kidd. Both became perennial All-Stars, and the league introduced a fixed rookie salary cap the following season. Hill’s early success set a precedent for later Duke players entering the league as high-impact rookies.

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Flagg Wins Rookie

Cooper Flagg won the 2025-26 NBA Rookie of the Year on April 27, 2026, with 56 first-place votes and 412 points, averaging 21.0 points in 70 games.
He posted 51- and 45-point games in April, becoming the youngest player and first teenager to score 50 points in a game.
Runner-up Kon Knueppel earned 44 votes and 386 points, led the league with 273 three-pointers and set the rookie record for three-point makes.

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