It’s no secret that Cooper Flagg, the Dallas Mavericks’ No. 1 overall pick who won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award, was a part of the league’s All-Rookie first-team that came out on Wednesday night.
But other bright, young stars of the NBA were named alongside him.
Charlotte Hornets’ Kon Knueppel, Flagg’s Duke Blue Devils teammate in college and runner-up to the Rookie of the Year Award, as well as Philadelphia 76ers’ VJ Edgecombe were also named unanimous All-Rookie First Team members alongside Flagg following voter tallies.
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Rounding out the first team were San Antonio Spurs guard Dylan Harper and Memphis Grizzlies guard Cedric Coward. All five players received votes for this year’s Rookie of the Year Award.
There were 100 ballots tallied for the teams, and Harper was seven votes shy of another unanimous selection. He had seven second-team votes, while Coward had 29 first-team votes and 67 second-team votes for a total of 125 points.
Flagg narrowly beat out Knueppel, who went three picks to the Hornets after his Duke teammate, earning 56 first-place votes compared to Knueppel’s 44 in that tally. Philadelphia 76ers guard VJ Edgecombe finished in third place with 96 points (93 third-place votes), while San Antonio Spurs’ Dylan Harper and Memphis Grizzlies’ Cedric Coward also got third-place votes.
Flagg is the second-youngest player to ever win the award, as the 19-year-old was only behind Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James.
For most of the season, it appeared Knueppel was going to win the award, but multiple voters came out publicly and said Knueppel’s Play-In Tournament struggles factored into them changing their minds for Flagg.
Knueppel had just six points on 2-of-12 shooting in 34 minutes during the Hornets’ electric 127-126 overtime win over the Miami Heat at the start of the tournament. Then, in the 121-90 loss to the Orlando Magic, he shot 3 of 11 for 11 points (4 of 5 from the free-throw line as well), and he posted a minus-26 while on the court.
Flagg noted being keen on what Knueppel was doing during the year, showing love to his fellow rookie.
“I see the games every night. I can check the box scores,” he said about watching Knueppel’s stat lines closely, per ESPN. “I think also I was watching Kon just because that’s one of my brothers.
“We had such a good connection, and we’re gonna be there for each other for the rest of our lives. I was watching him as a fan, as well, but there was obviously that competition at the same time.”
Flagg averaged 21 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game this year for the Mavericks. Those numbers had him among some NBA greats, as Larry Bird, Michael Jordan and Luka Doncic were the only rookies before Flagg to average at least 20 points, six rebounds and four assists since the NBA-ABA merger, ESPN pointed out. Flagg also led all rookies in scoring this season.
As for Knueppel, he dropped 18.5 points per game with 5.3 rebounds and 3.5 assists, but while Flagg had him beat in those categories, he reset the rookie 3-pointers made record with 273. That number also led the NBA this season. Knueppel was also a key piece in the Hornets getting into the Play-In Tournament to begin with, finishing 44-38 before being eliminated by the Magic.
But neither of them are still in the NBA Playoffs, as Harper has excelled alongside his Spurs teammates, most notably Victor Wembanyama, the NBA’s Rookie of the Year two seasons ago, and Stephon Castle, the Rookie of the Year during the 2024-25 campaign.
Edgecombe also played a vital role in the 76ers toppling the Boston Celtics in a first-round shocker, coming back from a 3-1 deficit to win the series in Game 7. Unfortunately for Edgecombe and his teammates, the New York Knicks swept them in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
The All-Rookie second-team consists of New Orleans Pelicans’ Derik Queen and Jeremiah Fears, Sacramento Kings’ Maxime Raynaud, Utah Jazz’s Ace Bailey and Toronto Raptors’ Collin Murray-Boyles.
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