After a back-and-forth season, the Rookie of the Year award has officially been announced, with Cooper Flagg narrowly edging out his former Duke teammate Kon Knueppel.
Flagg has lived up to expectations as the No. 1 overall pick. However, when former NBA star Carmelo Anthony attempted to credit former Dallas Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison for the selection, it did not sit well with Dallas fans.
Why Carmelo Anthony’s Praise for Nico Harrison Sparked Mavericks Backlash
Flagg arrived in Dallas last offseason after a shocking sequence of events in which Harrison and the Mavericks made the controversial decision to trade Luka Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers. In return, Dallas acquired Anthony Davis, but the move quickly backfired, and the team failed to make the playoffs.
Harrison was booed by fans throughout the season following the Dončić trade. Even landing the No. 1 overall pick, despite having just a 1.8% chance, did little to ease tensions. After Flagg was drafted and the season began, the boos only grew louder, eventually leading to Harrison’s dismissal.
With Davis later traded at the deadline, Flagg emerged as one of the few bright spots in an otherwise disappointing season for the Mavericks. Anthony’s decision to credit Harrison for that outcome, however, drew strong criticism.
“Shout out to Nico Harrison for seeing this right here,” he said on NBA Showtime. “For understanding his vision. Whatever happened or how it happened, Dallas got something back. They got the #1 pick and a rookie who led the squad in PTS, REB, AST, and STL. MJ is the only person to ever do that so when you talk about Cooper’s ceiling as a young face of the league. It’s Cooper Flagg.”
The NBA world quickly pushed back on this praise. Sports host Ben Rogers even joked about revoking Anthony’s media credentials.
“Media credential revoked,” he wrote.
Media credential revoked https://t.co/7JgkItCAvt
— Ben Rogers (@BenRogers) April 28, 2026
“Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt,” added sports analyst Bob Sturm.
Edward Fear was even more direct: “I do appreciate Melo being a hard ride or die for a brother, but F**K OUT OF HERE with this bulllllls**t.”
“My dear Melo: even Vlade Divac would have chosen Flagg,” wrote Spanish NBA analyst Leandro Caranza.
“This will get destroyed for egregious contextualization, but all I see is Carmelo being such a good friend he’ll say anything to defend his guy. Friends rule. Go friends,” added NBA analyst Rob Perez.
This will get destroyed for egregious contextualization, but all I see is Carmelo being such a good friend he’ll say anything to defend his guy. Friends rule. Go friends. https://t.co/IAIa23yEbc
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) April 28, 2026
“I thought this was fake when I just read it. #WorstTake,” wrote 1053 The Fan host Shan Shariff.
In his rookie season, Flagg recorded 1,473 points, 466 rebounds, 316 assists, and 84 steals, becoming the only rookie since Michael Jordan to lead his team in all four categories.
Flagg received 56 first-place votes compared to Knueppel’s 44 for the Rookie of the Year win and is expected to be the face of the Mavericks organization for many years to come.
