Ace Flagg is no stranger to the limelight. He and his twin brother Cooper Flagg had been drawing significant attention even before their championship season as high school freshmen in Newport, Maine.
And that attention isn’t always friendly.
With Ace Flagg in his freshman season at the University of Maine and Cooper Flagg in his rookie year with the Dallas Mavericks, there was always going to be an added level of scrutiny following Ace in Orono.
Not many college freshmen have a twin brother playing in the NBA, after all. And not many first year Black Bears get the level of heckling that Flagg is receiving from opposing fans during away games.
“I think we all kind of knew it was gonna happen. It’s just kind of what college-age kids do,” said UMaine head coach Chris Markwood. “So yeah, guys are on him, you know, opposing fans and students have been on him a little bit.”
Markwood said that the comments from those opposing fans have included references to Flagg’s twin brother, and are more noticeable in some away gyms than others, especially depending on the location of the student section. The heckling hasn’t risen to the level of being “super-egregious,” according to the UMaine coach.
“But it’s there, and I’ve definitely seen multiple examples of that,” Markwood said. “And I think Ace — what makes him an amazing person, what makes him a really good basketball player, is he’s a tough-minded kid.”
Asked if the away fans have been chirping at him, Flagg smiled and said “absolutely.” It’s certainly not the first time.
“It’s been something I’ve dealt with since high school,” Flagg said. “You kind of just get used to it.”
And he credited his former coach at Nokomis Regional High School, Earl Anderson, for setting the tone amid a wave of statewide and national attention during a championship season.
“My freshman year head coach put it perfectly: Everything inside our team is what we talk about, everything outside is just noise,” Flagg said. “It’s all the same, I don’t really listen to any of it.”
He may not listen to it, but his teammates certainly notice it.
“I think he’s done a great job,” UMaine junior guard Logan Carey said, noting that Flagg is already a big contributor to the team as a freshman. “All the media and the fans, we’ve seen it first hand. And he handles it perfectly, and we always have his back and support him.”
Markwood also said that Flagg has been handling the attention well. Flagg was recently named conference rookie of the week after helping the Black Bears pick up a pair of much-needed wins.
“It’s been a part of his life. Him and his brother have been dealing with this for a long time,” Markwood added about the freshman forward. “He’s kind of used to it, whether that’s right or wrong. But he’s responded well to it, and I’m sure it’s not easy for him, but I do think it motivates him in a positive way.”
Flagg arrived in Orono with as much attention and pressure as any Black Bear basketball player in recent memory. But he’s not complaining. Far from it.
“I look at it as a privilege, not a curse. A lot of people would kill to be in my position,” Flagg said. “It’s every little kid’s dream to play Division I basketball, which is where I am now. It was my dream. So I’m just very privileged to be here, very blessed, and I’m just happy every day for it.”
