They say all’s well that ends well, so what do we make of Cooper Flagg’s astonishing yet short-lived tenure at Duke? The six-foot-nine forward wowed the entire nation with his versatility and dominance, competing against future NBA stars. We can definitely say he lived up to the hype! But the way it ended? It broke our hearts.

Going into the Houston versus Duke Final Four matchup, everyone had the latter as their favorites. Not to mention, until the dying embers of the game, the Cougars did not even stand a chance. But it went down to the wire, and when the Blue Devils’ hopes fell on Flagg? He missed. Not only did Cooper Flagg miss a turnaround jumper in the paint, he also missed the chance to make history–to have a complete collegiate career.

After all, he was getting compared to the likes of Carmelo Anthony, who rocked the entire NCAA in his freshman year! The six-foot-seven forward won the Natty in his very first season and was in conversation for the Wooden Award. However, Flagg ended up only getting one half of the puzzle after a Final Four failure, leaving analysts to wonder about his legacy.

On ESPN’s The Drive w/ Tim Donnelly, Donnelly and Graham Hill discussed the impact that Cooper Flagg’s draft declaration has had, and where his place in college basketball history actually is. “When Duke was looking like a wagon in the NCAA tournament, when they were mowing teams down, who did they go talk to? Carmelo Anthony, right? Not because Carmelo Anthony was a great individual, not because Carmelo Anthony was on a great team. It’s because he was both.” Donnelly said, and it makes sense!

Anthony, at Syracuse, averaged a 22-point double-double, and never let up on the effort. Even in the Final Four matchup against Texas, he proved his mettle by dropping 33 points and leading the Orange to the championship game. However, Flagg wasn’t far behind in his own Final Four game, putting up 27 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 blocks! But Donnelly explained how the standards are different for what Flagg was trying to do.

Continuing with his train of thought, Tim Donnelly explained how Cooper Flagg fell short. “The conversations that Cooper Flagg was trying to be a part of were not National Players of the Year or national champions. He was trying to be part of both, right? He was trying to be a part of ‘I got both of those things’. Instead, he falls one rung short.” He went on to talk about how the superstar from Maine fell just one jumper short of excellence, of history.

But how can we fault the young star? He played his heart out for the entire season, only to go down in such an unexpected fashion. However, the way he plays is quite unique for a college star! Even Jayson Tatum, the Celtics superstar, said that Flagg “plays the right way” when discussing the young talent. But what exactly sets him apart from his competition? Well, Jon Scheyer might have something to say about that!

Jon Scheyer impressed with Cooper Flagg’s unique qualities

Even though Flagg did not end up with a trophy in his hands, the impact that he left behind in the Duke program is nothing to scoff at. The phenom from Montverde was a team player through and through, only concerned with one thing and one thing only–winning.

Duke’s head coach Jon Scheyer weighed in about what makes Flagg different from everyone else, what set him apart from the rest of the league. “To me, the separator and the joy of coaching Cooper is the person he was every day, the teammate that he was. Never about statistics or anything other than creating an environment and helping his team to win.” He said.

And it showed in his intent and attitude towards the game. Cooper Flagg was always the first to cheer on a teammate, and the last to take credit. Even though he is a top prospect, Flagg doesn’t let it get to his head at all. He plays good, old-fashioned team basketball, and he plays it the right way!

There’s no doubt that the six-foot-nine forward will dominate at the next level. Comparisons have been rolling in for him since day 1, and it will be interesting to see what he does next. One thing is for certain–Cooper Flagg will be remembered in college basketball history for a long time to come!