Kon Knueppel remembers winning the Cooper Flagg Duke pickup game.

Kon Knueppel Recalls Cooper Flagg’s Pickup Game Dominance: “It Was Rare to See”

With the 2025 NBA Draft approaching, all eyes are on projected No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg—and for good reason. But his Duke teammate and fellow top-10 prospect, Kon Knueppel, recently shared a story that adds even more hype to Flagg’s growing legend.

In an interview with USA Today Sports, Knueppel, a standout freshman from Wisconsin, remembered their first pickup game together. The duo played on the same team in a two-on-two matchup—and they couldn’t be stopped. After a long winning streak, Flagg switched teams, and that new squad also went on an extended run. The common factor? Flagg’s pure dominance.

“I remember that first summer playing pickup together,” Knueppel said. “We kept winning every game. Then he swapped teams with someone else, and they kept winning too. You don’t see that often. It was awesome to witness.”

This isn’t the first time Flagg has turned heads in an informal setting. Last summer, he stood out while scrimmaging with the USA Basketball Select Team, earning high praise from current NBA stars. His impact was so impressive that it added to the growing anticipation around his NBA debut.

While Flagg remains the clear favorite to go No. 1—likely to the Dallas Mavericks—Knueppel’s draft stock is also climbing. Some mock drafts project him going as high as No. 4, while others see him landing somewhere between picks 6 and 10.

Standing 6-foot-7 and weighing 217 pounds, Knueppel offers a valuable combination of size, shooting, and defensive versatility. He averaged 14.4 points per game in his lone college season, shooting nearly 48% from the field and over 40% from three-point range.

His own top-10 status only makes his praise for Flagg more meaningful. As a former five-star recruit himself, Knueppel knows elite talent when he sees it—and Flagg, he says, is the real deal.

Writer Jake Faigus, a University of Arizona graduate, covers basketball for several outlets, including Sporting News, USA Today, and iHeartMedia Phoenix.