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via Imago

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via Imago

“They don’t hate each other. I hated Larry and every Celtic… now everybody’s shaking each other’s hand… there’s a reason why the number, viewership is going down.” Earlier this year, Magic Johnson blamed a lack of rivalries for the decline in the NBA’s ratings. Of course, more rivalries mean more storylines that keep fans invested and glued to their screens. There is a growing belief that the NBA is gradually losing that charm.

So, everyone was ecstatic when two longtime rivals, Cooper Flagg and VJ Edgecombe, were selected not too far apart in last month’s draft. There was hope that their high school beef would carry over to the pros, making for great television. But is there truly bad blood between them? Guess not, as the 76ers rookie spilled the beans on Paul George’s podcast, “It’s a friendly rivalry. Off the court, we’re close. Like we’re close, but on the court we’re competing. We both competitors.”

Well, the speculations of their beef began when a clip of VJ and Cooper trash-talking during Montverde vs Long Island Lutheran went viral. “You not like that,” said Flagg to this year’s third overall pick, later yelling, “Put his a– in jail” after a tough bucket. Two top prospects going at each other immediately caught everyone’s attention. However, VJ clarified on the pod that the interaction was blown out of proportion.

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“The reason why he said that, people thought he said it because ‘Oh, he thinks I’m bad or something’ like, nah, I stepped over him. He was on the floor. He got like the last shot of the third quarter. And walking to my bench, I see him on the floor, and I just walked over him. That’s why.” VJ revealed. The Sixers’ rookie claims that the cameraman dragged it more than it needed to. He continued, “I understand, it’s for clicks. Got like a million views on it.”

Further clearing the air on their beef, VJ said, “We know at the end it’s all love between me and Coop. It was funny, though, coz we talk about it all the time. It’s love, man.” Turns out, the media tried to reignite the beef when the two youngsters faced each other during March Madness. Their friendly banter at the free throw line was completely misconstrued into another heated trash-talking session, and Edgecombe couldn’t believe it, “I’m like ‘Oh my gosh, bro!’ But it’s for clicks. I ain’t worried about it.” So, as much as the narrative is pushing for them to be rivals, there is no bad blood between VJ and Flagg. In fact, the Sixers rookie had a key advice for the former Duke star.

VJ Edgecombe urged Cooper Flagg to stop flopping during viral interaction

While describing his infamous trash-talking incident with Flagg, Edgecombe hilariously accused the former Duke star of flopping: “He was on the floor. He shot, flopped, tried to get a foul. And I was like ‘bro, that ain’t no foul.’ And I just walked over him.” That’s one of the reasons VJ got into the verbal altercation in the first place. He was not willing to back down to Cooper’s antics.

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What’s your perspective on:

Is the NBA losing its edge without real rivalries, or is this just media exaggeration?

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Then, it happened during March Madness, only this time, it was a more friendly interaction. “We both was smiling. Nobody was saying anything. I told him, I was like ‘Bro, don’t flop. I know you gonna get the call, but don’t flop. It looks bad.’ And we just smiling about it.” Edgecombe remarked, revealing his private advice to the number one pick.

Well, like it or not, flopping has become a key skill that players use to get to the free-throw line. From LeBron James to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, every big star has been accused of doing it. So, it’s not certain if Flagg will act on VJ’s advice once he begins his journey with the Mavs. And even though the Sixers’ rookie admitted that he has a strong relationship with Cooper Flagg, they will remain competitive like they have always been when the ball goes in the air. The excitement is real for this new-age rivalry.

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"Is the NBA losing its edge without real rivalries, or is this just media exaggeration?"

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