This draft cycle has many excellent prospects, but Cooper Flagg is the player all tanking teams aspire to acquire. Here is a ranking of the best fits for Cooper Flagg among the five teams with the worst records in the NBA this season.
Ranking The Best Fit For Cooper Flagg Among Bottom Five Teams
#1: Washington Wizards
Of the teams on this ranking, the Washington Wizards are the best fit for Flagg. With Washington, Flagg has the perfect complement of defense and secondary scoring next to him. He can use that foundation of teammates to develop his scoring and shot creation game. Not only that, but he would be the primary focal point on offense for the Wizards. With Jordan Poole and Carlton Carrington, Flagg will also be fed easier looks. Specifically, that will prevent Flagg from constantly creating for himself and others.
On defense, Flagg has other defensive pieces around him where he won’t need to clean up all defensive mistakes. Paired next to Bilal Coulibaly and Alexandre Sarr, the Wizards can form an impressive defensive core. Undoubtedly, the Wizards have the situation and pieces to be the best fit for Flagg and his potential.
#2: Utah Jazz
The next team on this ranking is the Utah Jazz as they possess pieces that fit well with Flagg. Offensively, Flagg will have dynamic offensive players next to him like Lauri Markkanen and Keyonte George. They offer excellent floor spacing for Flagg to operate in the paint. Furthermore, the combination of Markkanen, Flagg, and either Walker Kessler or Kyle Filipowski will mean that the Jazz will have an excellent starting frontcourt. However, there can be an issue as both Flagg and Markkanen are more natural fours. Regardless, the Jazz has pieces that complement Flagg well, and he has certain skills that the Jazz will benefit immensely from. Due to that, the Jazz are one of the better fits for Flagg.
#3: Charlotte Hornets
The Charlotte Hornets sit third in this ranking. While they do have positive aspects that complement Flagg, they also have certain concerns. To start with the positives, Flagg will have excellent co-stars in LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller, who can assist him with the offensive burden. Furthermore, Ball can feed Flagg easy shots with his great playmaking abilities. The Hornets have decent floor spacing for Flagg to operate better. Additionally, the Hornets do have certain defensive players who can help Flagg take the Charlotte defense to the next level. However, the concern with the Hornets is that they will relegate Flagg to a lesser offensive role due to the high usage of Ball and Miller. Due to that, Flagg may not have the opportunities to fully reach his potential on offense. Regardless, the positives that the Hornets bring still make them a good fit for Flagg.
#4: Toronto Raptors
The Toronto Raptors end up fourth in this ranking as while they can be a decent fit for Flagg, the team does have significant drawbacks against his fit with them. On the positives, the Raptors have good floor spacing options like Gradey Dick to surround Flagg with the space he needs to operate in the paint. Furthermore, he has other offensive options like Scottie Barnes to take that burden off of him and allow Flagg to develop. Not only that, but the Raptors have excellent defensive pieces that Flagg can add his talents to. However, the lack of good spacing in the front court can be difficult to put out on the court. Barnes isn’t a huge threat from distance, and none of the young bigs can shoot. While the Raptors have pieces that fit well with Flagg, there are deficiencies with the team that make them worse than the previous teams.
#5: New Orleans Pelicans
Given the pros and cons of each team, the worst fit for Flagg lies with the New Orleans Pelicans. Specifically, the fit between Zion Williamson and Flagg is tough to sort out. While Flagg can play the small forward position, his more natural position is the four, which Williamson occupies on the team. Not only that, but Flagg isn’t a consistent enough shooter to offset Williamson’s lack of shooting. Having two non-floor spacers in Flagg and Williamson will kill the offense for the Pelicans. Furthermore, Dejounte Murray isn’t the most consistent three-point shooter either. Putting a non-floor spacing big like Yves Missi to improve the defensive pieces around Flagg will cause further problems with the offense. Due to these deficiencies, the Pelicans fit the worst for Flagg.
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