17-year-old phenom Cooper Flagg’s most underrated skill revealed by former Duke star

Philadelphia 76ers star Jared McCain is all praise for new Duke recruit Cooper Flagg ahead of first season playing NCAA basketball.

17-year-old phenom Cooper Flagg’s most underrated skill revealed by former Duke star

Duke recruit Cooper Flagg's hard work impressed Philadelphia 76ers star Jared McCain

By now everyone knows how good of a prospect Cooper Flagg is. Despite being only 17 years old and not having played his first college basketball game. After impressing superstars in Team USA practice, he will get the chance to showcase his skills in competitive basketball. That too playing against seasoned college veterans. But his skills have former Duke star and now Philadelphia 76ers rookie, Jared McCain excited.

While talking about everything basketball on Podcast P with Paul George, his new teammate asked him if he noticed anything about Flagg. Despite only taking part in practices with the 17-year-old, McCain said:

I just came back from practice, I was in for Durham a little bit. Just watching him, he's just a very elite player. I think the biggest thing that stands out with him is playing hard. I think that's an underrated skill for the No. 1 player in the country. He does it, defensively, offensively. So, I'm excited to watch him this year.
Jared McCain on Podcast P

That underrated skill will do a world of good for the teenager. Especially when he already has the skill set to slack off if he wants.

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It goes to show that despite having all the media attention and grabbing endorsement deals, Cooper Flagg has the work ethic to keep it going. Working hard both on the offensive and defensive side of the game can make the difference between the good and the great.

Hard work has always gone unnoticed as most players resort to flashy plays to get crowds hyped up. But throughout NBA history, it has been time and again proved that those who have worked hard on both ends of the floor have become elite. Maybe that is what Jared McCain saw in Cooper Flagg.

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Cooper Flagg could make history with NCAA Championship

Cooper Flagg can use that hard work to play elite basketball in his first and probably only college basketball season. But if that hard work rubs off on his Duke Blue Devil teammates, the young star has a chance to create history. It has been more than a decade since an NCAA Champion became the No. 1 overall draft pick.

Flagg also has three 5-star recruits joining him, especially South Sudan Paris Olympics star Khaman Maluach. Duke has a commendable head coach in former player John Scheyer. Scheyer led Jared McCain and fellow NBA rookie Kyle Filipowski to the Elite Eight. Quite an achievement considering they did not have the talent against other teams.

But with Flagg, Maluach, and his teammates, the Duke Blue Devils are capable of winning it all. Now if he does that, Cooper Flagg will join the likes of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, and Anthony Davis as those select few who went No. 1 overall after winning an NCAA championship.

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