LeBron James gets real about Cooper Flagg joining Mavericks

"I personally think that he wants to be great," James started. "He had a hell of a year at Duke. A guy that can do so many different things out on the floor. Can play with the ball, can play without the ball. His jump shot is going to continue to get better. Super athletic, quick second jump.

"And also, he has the benefit, unlike myself, he gets to join a team that's established with Hall of Fame guys -- Klay Thompson, Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving -- right off the bat. Hall of Fame coach, Jason Kidd. You know, these guys are like, they're can give him the whole blueprint while he continues to learn what his blueprint will be. And I think that will be an incredible thing to have that type of presence, that type of leadership, that type of just basketball IQ and knowledge around him every single day from those pieces. So, I think he's going to be amazing." 

James saw Flagg firsthand at the Team USA training camp last offseason, with Flagg coming in for the Select Team. Flagg made a big impact on everyone there, solidifying his status as the player to watch in the upcoming college season, and he lived up to the standard.

LeBron James did seem a little jealous of how much talent Flagg will be playing with, as LeBron's first Cavaliers team was a mess. The team had won just 17 games the season before, with the second-leading scorer in his rookie year being Ricky Davis, someone who played for four teams in the six years after that before flaming out.