With Cooper Flagg's absences stacking, surging Kon Knueppel now shares same odds to win NBA Rookie of the Year
· Yahoo Sports
Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg hasn't played since Feb. 10 due to a left foot sprain that will keep him out again Friday night against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Flagg, 19, is set to miss his sixth straight outing, and his Mavericks are drifting toward the bottom of the Western Conference standings less than a month after a trade deadline that saw them deal Anthony Davis.
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The youngest No. 1 overall pick since LeBron James in 2003, Flagg is no longer the frontrunner to win NBA Rookie of the Year, according to BetMGM, which now lists him with the same odds (-115) to claim the award as his former Duke teammate and Charlotte Hornets guard Kon Knueppel.
Knueppel broke the NBA rookie record for 3-pointers in a single season Thursday when he went 8-of-12 from beyond the arc and piled up 28 points in a 133-109 win over the Indiana Pacers.
The 20-year-old Knueppel has now made 207 triples. He surpassed the mark of 206 that Keegan Murray of the Sacramento Kings set during the 2022-23 campaign.
Murray, though, played 80 games as a rookie. Knueppel's appeared in 59 so far, and the 29-31 Hornets still have 22 games remaining before their regular season comes to a close.
While Flagg is the centerpiece of a Mavericks franchise that's gone from NBA title contender to lottery lock over the past two seasons, Knueppel is part of a burgeoning young Hornets core that's eager to end the NBA's longest active playoff drought.
Looking for its first postseason trip since 2016, Charlotte is 13-3 in its last 16 games. That stretch began with a nine-game win streak, the franchise's longest since the 1998-99 season.
Flagg and Knueppel were separated by three picks in last year's draft.
Flagg is averaging more points (20.4), rebounds (6.6) and assists (4.1) per game than Knueppel, who is posting 19.4 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists per contest at the moment, but Knueppel is shooting the ball at a higher clip, especially from deep.
Knueppel's 44.2% 3-point percentage is tied for the sixth highest in the league.
They both showed out when they shared the court on Jan. 29. While the Hornets won 123-121, Flagg stole the spotlight with 49 points, the most an NBA teenager has ever scored. Knueppel wasn't too far behind with a career-high 34 points.
About a month later, they're neck-and-neck in Rookie of the Year odds, with Flagg's absences stacking and Knueppel surging.