Cooper Flagg's "The Maine Event" Nickname All But Guarantees He's Going To Be Awesome At Duke And In The NBA

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It's hard to argue that we're currently in a pretty insane run of high end potential franchise altering basketball talents/prospects. In recent years we've had Zion, Chet Holgrem, Wemby, and now there of course is Cooper Flagg. Players that have franchises ready to embrace the tank in hopes of landing a player that will change their fortunes forever. 

Well, I am ready to say that after learning of Cooper Flagg's new nickname, I have no doubt in my mind that he's going to be an absolute monster not just for Duke, but once he gets to the NBA as well

In basketball, and really in life, you can't force a nickname. You can always tell when one feels weird and forced, and usually, it doesn't stick. But the good ones? The ones that come naturally? Those set you up for greatness. I'd go so far as to say you can't find me too many NBA players with an awesome nickname that fits perfectly who turned out to be busts.

The Maine Event for Cooper Flagg is one of those perfect nicknames for me. Not forced, not corny, and it obviously fits. Even if you are someone who hates all things Duke, I don't know how anyone could hate this nickname. I have no idea how Brad Stevens is going to do it considering Cooper Flagg is most likely going to be the #1 pick whenever he enters the Draft, but I need The Maine Event to be playing for his hometown team next to his fellow Duke alum and idol

I'm going to need Brad/Mike Zarren to figure out how to get the NBA back to doing territorial picks or something. This is a match made in heaven.

But there's also another reason I love this nickname and it has nothing to do with Cooper Flagg. As a big nostalgia guy, when I hear the nickname Maine Event, my brain immediately thinks back to THIS Main Event

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If you're around my age and you love basketball, there's a good chance you were molded by the AND1 Tour and Main Event. To this day there's been nothing quite like the AND1 run from around 2001-06. There's a reason they made a documentary about it, and guys like Main Event were a huge part of that success. Find me a basketball fan in their mid 30s or older that didn't love the AND1 Mixtape Tour. You can't. It was one of the most fun parts of living in that early internet era.

I was generally already IN on Cooper Flagg strictly from the highlights I've seen, but now with an awesome nickname attached to his game there's no doubt in my mind he's going to be another one of these generational prospects. That's just how sports work.