Event: Mavericks

Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg speaks to the crowd before a game against the Chicago Bulls at American Airlines Center in Dallas on April 12. | Imagn Images / via Reuters In the second-closest vote in the award's recent history, a 100-member global media panel selected Dallas ⁠Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg as the 2025-26 NBA Rookie of the Year on Monday.Flagg outpaced his former Duke teammate Kon Knueppel of the Charlotte Hornets 412 to 386 in total points. Flagg earned 56 first-place votes to Knueppel's 44. The Dallas forward earned the Wilt Chamberlain Trophy along with the honor"I ​see the games every night," Flagg said about monitoring Knueppel's results. "I can ‌check the ‌box scores. I think also I was watching Kon ​just because that's one of my brothers. We had such a good connection, and we're gonna be there for each other for the rest of our lives. I ⁠was watching him as a fan as well, but there was obviously that competition at the ⁠same time." In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever.By subscribing, you can help us get the story right. SUBSCRIBE NOW