Duke Blue Devils superstar Cooper Flagg is arguably the best player in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament, yet ESPN analysts think it’s more important to talk about his skin color than his talents.
On Thursday’s episode of “First Take,” Jay Williams and Stephen A. Smith held a conversation about Flagg’s impact not only on college basketball, but his future influence on the NBA. Flagg is expected to go No. 1 in the draft overall regardless of how March Madness unfolds, and many are arguing that he would be the NBA’s most marketable star.
While there’s nothing egregious or weird about that, Williams and Smith think that Flagg’s potential status as a top star in the NBA is more indicative of how American basketball fans like white players better.
"There are pictures of him in college basketball with his face and the American flag behind it. Think about everything happening in our country right now. About what it means to be America. 'America first'" - Jay Williams on Cooper Flagg's marketability pic.twitter.com/AGeVh7IbIB
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) March 20, 2025
"Cooper Flagg now. There are pictures of him in college basketball with his face and the American flag behind it,” Williams said. “Think about everything happening in our country right now. About what it means to be America. ‘America first.’ Okay? He’s from Maine. He’s not like from one of these cities. He’s from Maine, representing the bigger grand stage of the country.”
“If Duke wins and Cooper Flagg wins, it becomes way bigger than just basketball. And then it becomes, could he be the face of the league moving forward?" he continued.
Kamala Harris would feast herself on this word salad, especially because it doesn’t make a lot of sense. However, there is a message hidden in his words.
Williams seems to indicate that being from a largely rural state and loving America is a character flaw. Furthermore, he seems to be subtly suggesting that only white people have the ‘America first’ mentality, something progressives like Williams hate. In a convoluted, ambiguous way, he’s suggesting that people only like Flagg because he’s white and proud to be American.
In case you think that’s a stretch, Smith made it abundantly clear that that’s what they were talking about.
“I love what you brought up. Cooper Flagg, the American flag, and let's call it what it is, white," Smith said in response to Williams. "We see some of these European brothers. But again, European is not American. When you look at it from that standpoint, the marketability."
Absurd, yet typical, stuff from ESPN.
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NBA fans would cheer for Flagg for two reasons: he’s extraordinarily talented, and he loves America. Part of the reason NBA ratings have tanked in recent years is because many of the stars in the league have promoted an America-hating, progressive message that most people - of all skin colors - don’t agree with. Should Flagg be a top star in the league, people will cheer for him because he will be a break from the norm among basketball stars.
That’s why people will root for Flagg, not his skin color. But leave it to ESPN to suggest something else.
In the meantime, Duke tips off against Mount St. Mary’s in their first tournament game at 2:50 p.m.
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