There was an inflection point in Cooper Flagg’s lone season at Duke when everything changed for the freshman sensation. His college career had started strong, but Matt MacKenzie, Flagg’s longtime personal trainer, knew there was a different level for the 6-foot-9 forward and Newport, Maine, native to tap into.
During Christmas break, some conversations were had. MacKenzie, who was welcomed in by the Duke program throughout the season to help work with Flagg, was part of meetings with Flagg and Duke head coach Jon Scheyer. The basis of the discussions: How could they get the most out of Flagg’s unique talent?
“To me, knowing him the way I do, I didn’t feel like he was playing to his potential,” said MacKenzie, who has worked with Flagg in Maine since he was in sixth grade. “It was really just, how can we unleash the Cooper Flagg that we know? He needed to hear that he had full rein of that team and he could be the guy that he knows he can be.”
The message was certainly received. MacKenzie noticed a clear difference in Flagg from the first to the second semester of the season, when he took his game to greater heights. He went off for monster scoring performances, including a 42-point game in January against Notre Dame. His outside shooting became a strength, which was intentional. And Flagg led Duke to the Final Four while being named the Naismith Player of the Year, becoming the fourth freshman to ever do so.
