This season’s ROTY race has been one of the closer ones we have seen in recent memory. We have two great candidates who deserve to be named Rookie of the Year. For the majority of the season, the Charlotte Hornets’ guard Kon Knueppel jumped out to an exceptional lead over number one overall pick Cooper Flagg. However, with Flagg’s recent scoring outburst, is this race his to lose now?
Flagg’s Recent Play
This conversation really started after Coop’s last two games, against the Orlando Magic and Los Angeles Lakers. Against the Magic, he dropped 51 points, the most by a teenager in NBA history. Then, against LA, he scored 45 and secured a win against a top-three seed in the Western Conference, at the time. When you have back-to-back dominant performances like that, it’ll definitely jump you up the ranks in the ROTY race, if not put you in the front of the line.
For the majority of the season, Flagg has been great for a rookie. He’s averaging 21.1 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 4.6 apg, 1.2 spg, and .9 bpg, while having a 47.3%, 29.7%, and 82% shooting splits. Have the Mavs had much success as a team? Absolutely not, more like a season from hell when you look at where they were before the season started. Flagg has been the bright spot, leading the team in scoring as a rookie, and that has been extremely impressive.
Hornets’ ROTY Contender
Kon Knueppel has been excellent this season for the Charlotte Hornets. He’s averaged 18.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg, and 3.4 apg while shooting a very efficient 48.1%, 43%, and 86.2% shooting splits. What’s more astonishing is that he broke the rookie record for three-pointers made in a season in only 59 games. Knueppel is also leading the entire NBA in three’s. With just four games remaining, there’s a great chance that he becomes the first rookie to accomplish that feat.
Comparison
On one hand, you have someone who has been thrust into the spotlight with the absence of Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis for most of the season. Conversely, you’ve got a player who has been the third, and sometimes second, option on a team that has been essentially a plug-and-play guy. Flagg has Kon beat in your “counting stats”, but Knueppel has him beat with leading the NBA in threes and from a winning standpoint. Not that winning is a major factor in the ROTY award, anyway.
Who Would Get My ROTY Vote?
If I had a vote, Kon Knueppel would be number one on my ballot for the Rookie of the Year this season. Am I saying that Flagg’s season has been bad or subpar? No. I believe he is living up to the hype that surrounded him when he was drafted number one last year, and then some. He’s had a brilliant start to his career. Kon would get my vote based on his consistency throughout the entirety of his campaign, and I will not be swayed solely because of a hot stretch at the end of the season.
Final Thoughts
Do I think that you would be wrong to vote for Coop? Nope, not even the slightest. I wouldn’t even argue with you if he won the award. ROTY isn’t an award that you can be “robbed of.” Both players have been sensational and appear to be off to an outstanding start in a fantastic career. Who do you think should get the nod for the award?
As always, thank you so much for checking out my thoughts on the ROTY race between Kon Knueppel and Cooper Flagg! Be sure to check out our other amazing content here at New Leaf News! We hope you’re enjoying your day and look forward to seeing you again soon.
