NBA Rumors: Prospect Sparked Tensions At Jayson Tatum’s Camp
Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum held his annual basketball camp, and word on the street is that one upcoming NBA prospect triggered a multi-time All-Star during a not-so-friendly game of 1-on-1.
As the story goes, Cooper Flagg, a 16-year-old prospect from Maine, was in attendance during Tatum’s camp and called out nonother than Bradley Beal. And to the surprise of many, Flagg put up a fight that unleashed some verbal fireworks — as the 6-foot-8 forward tends to spark — to Beal’s disapproval.
“I heard a rumor that my boy Cooper Flag was at Jayson Tatum’s camp and he was busting Brad Beal 1-on-1, and Brad Beal got mad at him. Started cussing him out,” NBC Sports’ Brian Scalabrine said Wednesday, according to Sean Deveney of Heavy. “This dude is a major trash-talker. … So I guess the rumor is that Brad Beal and him were squaring off 1-on-1 and Brad Beal was taking it lightly. Then Cooper started giving it to him. And I guess the rumor is, Cooper started talking trash and Bradley Beal got mad. Really mad.”
Most recently, Flagg was a standout in helping put Maine United on the map during Nike’s EYBL Peach Jam in Atlanta. There, Flagg averaged a stellar 25.4 points with 13 rebounds and 5.7 assists, including a 45-point performance, to lead Maine to a 4-0 start in the tournament.
Flagg is quickly becoming a household name, now ranked No. 2 in ESPN’s top-60 prospects for the Class of 2025. Having recently transferred to Montverde Academy in Flordia, where D’Angelo Russell, Ben Simmons and Cade Cunningham attended, Flagg remains undeclared with college scouts rushing to watch him at any given chance.
Might not be too long until Flagg and Beal meet again on the NBA stage, with plenty of cameras to capture the action and no need to rely on Scalabrine’s word.