Cooper Flagg wins NBA Rookie of the Year after Kon Knueppel's Play-In Tournament struggles swayed voters
Cooper Flagg of the Dallas Mavericks has been named the 2025-26 NBA Rookie of the Year in a close vote over Charlotte Hornets' Kon Knueppel. Flagg received 56 first-place votes compared to Knueppel's 44, finishing with 412 total points to Knueppel's 386. Knueppel's poor performance in the Play-In Tournament reportedly influenced voters' decisions.
- ▪Cooper Flagg won the 2025-26 NBA Rookie of the Year award with 56 first-place votes.
- ▪Kon Knueppel, Flagg's former Duke teammate, finished second with 44 first-place votes.
- ▪Knueppel struggled in the Play-In Tournament, scoring six points on 2-of-12 shooting in one game and posting a minus-26 rating in another.
- ▪VJ Edgecombe of the Philadelphia 76ers finished third in voting with 96 total points.
- ▪Flagg, at 19, is the second-youngest player to win the award, behind only LeBron James.
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Sports Cooper Flagg wins NBA Rookie of the Year after Kon Knueppel's Play-In Tournament struggles swayed voters Flagg earned 56 first-place votes to Knueppel's 44, finishing just above his fellow Duke Blue Devils teammate By Scott Thompson Fox News Published April 27, 2026 10:43pm EDT Facebook Twitter Threads Flipboard Comments Print Email Add Fox News on Google close Video Cooper Flagg's Rookie Season Ends With Him In Jordan Company | The Ricky Cobb Show Cooper Flagg came into the NBA as a can’t-miss prospect, and somehow he’s exceeded the hype. Brace yourselves, but his rookie season has already put him in conversations with Michael Jordan.
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