"He ain't f***ing with Zion Williamson": UNC legend Theo Pinson snubs Cooper Flagg for Pelicans star as best Duke freshman of all time

Cooper Flagg ended his freshman season at Duke as one of the best rookies the program has ever seen. Flagg recorded averages of 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game, leading the Blue Devils to the Final Four last season.

However, the question remains: Is he the best freshman Duke has ever had? Throughout history, several phenoms have come through Durham and electrified the college basketball world. Some names thrown around in this discussion include New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson, Jabari Parker, Marvin Bagley III and Jayson Tatum.

Theo Pinson, a former North Carolina and Brooklyn Nets star, weighed in on the debate with his crew from the "To The Baha" podcast on Wednesday, calling the hype and "recency bias" surrounding Cooper Flagg "insane."

"I don't give a f*** what happens — even if Cooper wins that (national championship) this year," Pinson said (Timestamp: 0:38). "He ain't f***ing with Zion Williamson out of Duke. Zion was a freak." "There are certain situations where no one's debating this Cooper Flagg-number-one-pick type of thing. But you still take a look at Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper, you know what I’m saying? You’re still taking that look. When Zion was coming out, it wasn’t even a question. No one was wondering who the No. 1 pick was."

Pinson added that despite Flagg being the heavy favorite to be the top pick in the upcoming NBA draft, the gap between him and other prospects is not as wide as many believe.

---

Duke legend Coach K selects Cooper Flagg as greatest freshman in program history

Legendary Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski has his pick for the greatest freshman to play for the Blue Devils. During an interview on Sirius XM in April with Dusty Dvoracek and Danny Kanell, Coach K shared his thoughts on some of the best players to come through Durham.

"Grant (Hill) is the best player to ever play at Duke. (Christian) Laettner is the most accomplished," Krzyzewski said. "Cooper (Flagg) is definitely the best freshman that has ever played."

What's interesting is that Krzyzewski picked Cooper Flagg over Zion Williamson, whom he coached during his lone season back in 2018-19. On Wednesday, Cameron Salerno of CBS Sports put together his list of the top freshmen in Duke's history and had Williamson at No. 2 behind Flagg.

Dawn Staley, Geno Auriemma, or Kim Mulkey - who is NCAAW's highest-paid coach? Find out here

Edited by nagpaltusharn25