Former Maverick unleashes heartbreaking Cooper Flagg ROTY take fans will hate

Cooper Flagg has taken the league by storm as a 19-year-old, and he's on his way to greatness after one of the more dominant rookie seasons in history. However, there's a catch: his friend and former Duke teammate Kon Knueppel has been in the running since the beginning of the season, and for good reason.

Former Dallas Mavericks forward Chandler Parsons is a co-host on "Run It Back" on FanDuel TV. He's bought into the media Kool-Aid that Knueppel should be the Rookie of the Year. It's a growingly popular opinion, but it hurts that the former Maverick chose Knueppel.

"Cooper Flagg is the best player in this draft... but if I had a Rookie of the Year vote, it's Kon Knueppel's, and I don't think it's close," Parsons said.

Chandler Parsons says the ROTY race isn't close

To say Knueppel should win the award is a fair claim. Mavs fans may not like hearing it, but if anyone else were to take the award, fans would be happy to see Knueppel accept it.

But to say that it's not close is almost asinine. Flagg has been having a historic rookie season, and he just became the first teenager in NBA history to score 50 points in a game. It looks like Flagg hears the noise, and he's giving a late push to take the award that should be his.

If we're comparing the former Duke teammates one-on-one, Flagg put up a 49-point performance against the Charlotte Hornets. The game ended in a loss, but the best rookie was on display that night. It's been a hard race to judge, but Flagg has always had an answer any time Knueppel tried to cut into his lead.

Since Parsons retired, he's remained a neutral voice in the NBA media. His take is stunning for Mavs fans, but to be honest, he didn't suit up in a uniform that long. Some fans may still even roll their eyes when they see Parsons, as injuries derailed his time with Dallas.

The case for Knueppel winning ROTY is unfortunately real

Knueppel may be the next Klay Thompson with the way he's going, as he's already broken a rookie record for most threes in a season, and he did that in late February. He's been a huge reason the Hornets went on a seven-game win streak and an eight-game road win streak, and they won six straight games by 15 points or more.

Knueppel is a spot-up shooter who can create space and hit open shots with ease. Flagg's former co-star is averaging 18.7 points per game while shooting 43 percent from deep. Shooting from beyond the arc is Flagg's Achilles heel, but as time goes on, he will get better.

Flagg has been doing things the media hasn't seen since LeBron James. The 41-year-old future Hall of Famer even defended Flagg playing the point guard this season. With enough reps and confidence, Jason Kidd gave Flagg the keys to run point, and it's paid off.

Knueppel does have a case, but if we break it down by individual performances, Flagg must be the Rookie of the Year.