'Surreal Feeling': Cooper Flagg Blown Away by Celtics' Legend's Evaluation

Bobby Krivitsky | 2 Hours Ago

Oct 4, 2024; Durham, NC, USA; Duke Blue Devils guard Cooper Flagg (2) is introduced to the fans during Countdown to Craziness at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images / Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images

In a matter of weeks, the Celtics will raise Banner 18 to the TD Garden rafters before their opening night clash with the Knicks on Oct. 22. The last time they enjoyed a championship ceremony, it was with Kevin Garnett coming to Boston to rejuvenate the franchise.

Since then, not only have the Celtics returned to the NBA's summit, but the local basketball scene has blossomed.

Between Cooper Flagg of Newport, Maine, and Brockton, MA native AJ Dybantsa, New England may boast back-to-back No. 1 picks in the 2025-26 NBA drafts.

While Dybantsa is still in high school, Flagg's highly anticipated collegiate career with the Duke Blue Devils is soon to commence. The praise for a prospect who impressed while competing against a U.S. men's basketball team boasting stars like LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Jayson Tatum this summer includes a recent assessment from Garnett on his podcast, KG Certified, which also comes with the warning that it contains the use of profanity.

"He's got superstar around him. I can see kids wanting to be like that and play like that," said Garnett. "We haven't had a bad [expletive], cold [expletive] white boy like this in a long time."

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In an interview with ESPN's Jonathan Givony, Flagg told him that hearing those comments from a Basketball Hall of Famer he grew up watching as a Celtics fan was a "surreal feeling."

"For sure," said Flagg when asked if there's a comp to make between the two. "Defensive versatility, competitiveness, those are all things, that attitude, they're something that you can't really teach, something that you have to have."

That blend of skills and intangibles, including a fiery competitive nature, will be on display in Durham this season and could soon make him a franchise player.