Cooper Flagg back in Maine to coach at youth basketball camp

COOPER FLAG BACK IN MAINE THIS WEEKEND TO HELP HUNDREDS OF KIDS WHO WANT TO BE JUST LIKE HIM, COOPER AND HIS TWIN BROTHER ACE, HOSTING THEIR SECOND ANNUAL BASKETBALL CAMP AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MAINE IN ORONO. OUR RONNIE PERILLO TAKES US TO THE COURT FOR MORE ON THE EVENT. WHAT IT MEANS TO BE FROM MAINE. NO, WE’RE NOT TALKING ABOUT THAT. POLAND SPRING AD FROM THE 90S. WE’RE TALKING ABOUT WHAT THE FIRST EVER NUMBER ONE DRAFT PICK FROM THE STATE HAS TO SAY ABOUT HIS HOME. IT WAS REALLY COOL SEEING, YOU KNOW, A BUNCH OF DIFFERENT PLACES DOING LITTLE PARTIES AND WHATNOT. SO, I MEAN, IT WAS CRAZY. JUST I MEAN, AGAIN, IT JUST SHOWS THE AMOUNT OF SUPPORT AND LOVE THAT THAT THE COOPER FLAG RELIVING AN UNFORGETTABLE NIGHT AFTER BEING NAMED THE FIRST OVERALL IN THE NBA DRAFT BY THE DALLAS MAVERICKS, COOPER TEAMED UP WITH HIS BROTHER ACE, WHO WILL PLAY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MAINE THIS SEASON AND TOOK THEIR PASSION FOR BASKETBALL BACK TO THE COURTS TODAY, HELPING COACH HUNDREDS OF KIDS. SOME CAME FROM PLACES AS FAR AS THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST, BUT OTHERS JUST WANTED A GLIMPSE OF THEIR HOMETOWN HEROES. WHEN I SAW THEM, I THOUGHT, LIKE BEFORE I EVEN KNEW THAT I WAS GOING HERE, I FELT LIKE I’LL NEVER GET TO SEE COOPER FLAG IN H. COOPER AND ACE WELCOMING THE CHANCE TO GIVE BACK AND HELP KIDS LIKE GAB SHOOT FOR THEIR DREAMS, BECAUSE A GOOD COACH CAN MAKE ALL THE DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD. I MEAN, I THINK THE BIGGEST THING IS JUST HAVING A GOOD ATTITUDE. I DON’T REMEMBER BEING THERE, TO BE HONEST. I DON’T REMEMBER ANY OF THE CORNY ADVICE OR ANYTHING THAT ANY PLAYER SAID TO ME WHEN I WAS AT CAMP, JUST FOR ME, IT’S MORE ABOUT JUST BEING THERE, BEING PRESENT, HAVING LITTLE INTERACTIONS, BECAUSE THOSE ARE ALL THE THINGS THAT I REMEMBER MORE ABOUT MY TIME AT CAMP. AND AS ALWAYS, THE BOYS PARENTS WERE THERE TO CHEER THEM ON ONCE AGAIN. YOU KNOW, THEY’RE HERE GIVING BACK TO OUR COMMUNITY AND OUR HOME STATE OF MAINE. IT’S EXCITING, AND WE’RE GLAD THAT, YOU KNOW, WE CAN HELP PROVIDE THIS OPPORTUNITY FOR SO MANY MAINE KIDS. AND BOTH COOPER AND ACE SAY THEY’RE ENJOYING SOME TIME HERE AT HOME IN MAINE WITH THE FAMILY BEFORE THEY HEAD BACK TO THE HARDWOOD THIS SEASON AT T

Cooper Flagg back in Maine to coach at youth basketball camp

The brothers helped coach hundreds of children in Grades 1 through 6 on the fundamentals of basketball across three gymnasiums on campus

Updated: 9:48 PM EDT Aug 9, 2025

Editorial Standards ⓘ

Cooper Flagg returned home to Maine this weekend to take part in coaching a youth basketball camp at the University of Maine with his brother, Ace. The brothers helped coach hundreds of children in Grades 1 through 6 on the fundamentals of basketball across three gymnasiums on campus. Some families we spoke with said they travelled from as far as Seattle to attend the camp. Cooper and Ace said being a good coach is more about being there than any technique.”I think the biggest thing for me is just having a good attitude. To be honest, I don’t remember any of the corny advice any player said to me while I was at camp. Just more about being there, being present, having those little interactions. Those are things that I remember more about my time at camp.” Kelly Flagg, Cooper and Ace’s mother, said the past few months have been a whirlwind, but she is grateful to be able to help give back to children in Maine.Cooper was selected as the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks. It makes him the first No. 1 draft pick in any professional sport from Maine. His twin brother, Ace, will play for the University of Maine this season.

ORONO, Maine —

Cooper Flagg returned home to Maine this weekend to take part in coaching a youth basketball camp at the University of Maine with his brother, Ace.

The brothers helped coach hundreds of children in Grades 1 through 6 on the fundamentals of basketball across three gymnasiums on campus. Some families we spoke with said they travelled from as far as Seattle to attend the camp. Cooper and Ace said being a good coach is more about being there than any technique.

“I think the biggest thing for me is just having a good attitude. To be honest, I don’t remember any of the corny advice any player said to me while I was at camp. Just more about being there, being present, having those little interactions. Those are things that I remember more about my time at camp.”

Kelly Flagg, Cooper and Ace’s mother, said the past few months have been a whirlwind, but she is grateful to be able to help give back to children in Maine.

Cooper was selected as the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks. It makes him the first No. 1 draft pick in any professional sport from Maine. His twin brother, Ace, will play for the University of Maine this season.