Over the weekend, at the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black, basketball legend Michael Jordan and Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg shared a moment that captivated the basketball world.
Cameras caught the moment when the teenager approached the NBA legend, and what followed became an instant viral clip: a handshake that seemed to carry the weight of history.
For fans, this was not just a casual greeting between two athletes. It was a bridge between eras: Jordan, the six-time NBA champion and cultural icon, and Flagg, an 18-year-old rookie entering the league with more hype than perhaps anyone since LeBron James.
Jordan himself had reason to be in the spotlight that weekend, beyond casual observation.
Following a standout performance by the European squad, particularly after Tyrrell Hatton sank a clutch 10-foot birdie on hole 13, the NBA legend didn’t mince words about Team USA’s prospects:
“We got problems.” The blunt assessment came after Europe built momentum the Americans never regained, a trend that foreshadowed the tournament’s swing in their favor.
Hatton and Jon Rahm had dueled with American stalwarts Bryson DeChambeau and Justin Thomas early on, but by the seventh hole the momentum had shifted.
That 13th-hole birdie gave Europe a lead they sustained, culminating in a 4 and 3 finish on hole 15 and one of three match victories the Europeans claimed early on.
Flagg‘s presence at a golf event may raise eyebrows, but he’s no casual observer. A golf fan with a 14 handicap, he has described playing a round with Jordan as a personal goal.
Beyond the hype, real expectations await
The excitement surrounding this handshake speaks volumes about the level of anticipation attached to Flagg. Drafted earlier this year, the Maine native has been touted as a transformative talent, someone capable of anchoring a franchise from day one.
Comparisons to Luka Doncic and LeBron James have already been made, and while those expectations are daunting, Flagg has shown poise in embracing the attention.
Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, speaking recently on Rich Kleiman‘s Boardroom podcast, said:
“You know, the basketball gods smiled on us when we got Cooper, and the guy is just incredible… everybody loves him to death.”
Cuban acknowledged the immense pressure of such early hype, adding, “It’s hard to imagine that this 18-year-old kid is the kind of hope for the franchise that we were when we got Luka.”
Flagg’s time at Duke University already provided him with a crash course in handling the spotlight, and now the NBA stage awaits.
Still, the image of him locking hands with Jordan serves as an unofficial endorsement in the eyes of fans. It suggests that the baton may be ready to pass, not through words, but through a simple gesture of recognition.
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