Naismith Trophy awarded to Duke standout Cooper Flagg
Duke sensation Cooper Flagg claimed his second major accolade in as many days as he was awarded the Naismith Trophy for being the top player in the nation on Sunday.
The day before, Flagg was named the recipient of the Wooden Award.
Flagg became only the fourth freshman to win the Naismith Trophy, which is presented by the Atlanta Tipoff Club. The other three are Kevin Durant from Texas (2007), Anthony Davis from Kentucky (2012), and Zion Williamson from Duke (2019).
The same quartet are the sole freshmen to have won the Wooden Award.
The announcement of Flagg's latest award came in San Antonio, just one day after the Blue Devils suffered a 70-67 defeat to Houston in the Final Four.
\"This is an incredible honor and I am truly grateful for the recognition,\" Flagg expressed. \"This whole year, this (NCAA) tournament, has gone by so fast. It's been a blur and an incredible year. I have to give a lot of credit to my teammates, Coach (Jon) Scheyer, the rest of the staff and everyone who had me ready to go every single night. They believed in me and let me be me out there on the court.\"
Flagg emerged as the frontrunner for the award in the latter half of the season, averaging 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 4.2 assists in 37 games.
The other finalists were Johni Broome from Auburn, Walter Clayton Jr. from Florida, and Braden Smith from Purdue.
Among Flagg's other achievements are being named Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year and being a consensus first-team All-American.
Flagg is expected to be the top pick in the NBA draft if he decides to enter his name.
Rick Pitino was named the Werner Ladder Coach of the Year after leading St. John's to a 31-5 record in his second season at the school.
The 31 wins matched the school record set twice in the mid-1980s.
The Red Storm received a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament but were eliminated in the second round with a loss to Arkansas. Their first-round victory over Omaha marked the school's first NCAA tournament win since 2000.
\"I am truly honored to receive the Werner Ladder Naismith Coach of the Year award, especially with the incredible coaching of the other finalists this past season,\" the 72-year-old Pitino shared. \"I want to thank my players and coaches for making this possible after a historic season for St. John's Basketball. I am also grateful to the Atlanta Tipoff Club and the Naismith Awards selection committee for this prestigious honor.\"
The other finalists were Bruce Pearl from Auburn, Kelvin Sampson from Houston, and Jon Scheyer from Duke.
Creighton center Ryan Kalkbrenner was named Naismith Defensive Player of the Year. The senior blocked 93 shots this season and was also named Big East Defensive Player of the Year for the fourth consecutive year.
Kalkbrenner also averaged 19.2 points and 8.7 rebounds while shooting 65.3 percent from the field this season.
\"It is a huge honor to be named Naismith Defensive Player of the Year and I am most appreciative to my teammates, coaches, and the Atlanta Tipoff Club for recognizing our success,\" Kalkbrenner stated.
The other finalists were Joseph Tugler from Houston and two Tennessee players, Jahmai Mashack and Zakai Zeigler.
