The 2025 No. 1 overall pick, Cooper Flagg, has had his height targeted by critics. During the pre-draft process last year, conflicting measurements from scouting services had him anywhere from 6-foot-8 to 6-foot-9, forcing outlets to average out the numbers just to settle on a listing. Now, heading into his second NBA season, fan confusion is back, with Flagg’s growth spurt in question.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
Speaking at Mavericks Media Day, Flagg confirmed he’s grown since his rookie campaign, going from his listed height of 6-foot-9 last season to an official barefoot measurement of 6-foot-10 taken the day before.
“I’m 6-10, with no shoes,” Flagg told reporters. “I was like 6-9 last year, so definitely taller.” When pressed further on just how tall he might be with shoes on, he added with a smirk, “Maybe I’m 6-11, I don’t know.”
The update means Cooper Flagg, still just 19 years old, now measures taller than established NBA big men like Bam Adebayo and Jarrett Allen. It is a notable jump for a player already coming off a Rookie of the Year season built on a versatile, multi-positional game rather than pure size.
The reaction online ranged from amused to genuinely stunned. One fan poked fun at the NBA’s own social media post.
“‘TALLER’ is hilarious,” a fan wrote.
It was a nod to how matter-of-factly the league treated a teenager casually adding an inch overnight. Others focused on just how much Flagg’s frame has shifted since he entered the league.
“He was like 6′-7″ without shoes last year that’s crazy,” one fan wrote.
The comment echoed the same conflicting pre-draft measurements that had scouts unable to agree on his exact size even before he was drafted first overall. A few fans leaned into the absurdity of a grown professional athlete still gaining height.
“Growing an inch between rookie and sophomore year is such a flex when most of us peaked in 9th grade,” another user wrote.
That comment referenced the confirmed jump from 6-9 to 6-10 between his rookie season and now.
Another person pushed back on the scale of the coverage itself.
“The way this s*** get blown outta proportion is insane,” the user wrote.
It was a fair point given a Mavericks reporter spent part of media day specifically trying to pin down whether Flagg had hit 6-foot-11.
Not every reaction was about the number itself. One fan tied the height news directly to Flagg’s ceiling as a player.
“The only threat to Wemby as best in the world for the next 15 years,” the comment read.
It was a nod to a rookie season that already included a record-breaking 49-point game and ROY honors, now paired with a frame that keeps closing the physical gap with the league’s other young unicorn.