Be a kid for as long as you can, run with other kids. At least three NCAA years enjoying the college experience.
Entering the work world at 22 is how you do it.
People have obviously been dunking on this take already but Cooper is 14 seconds faster than the 2nd fastest person in his local district. That is outrageous. Absolutely comical. Need I say more?
Surprised and disappointed to hear that because going pro early has only worked out for a few. Obviously he wasn’t going to have any competition in the 8 but he would have had opportunities to get his 400 and mile time down to truly sument his legacy.
2024 Olympic 200m:
Tebogo - dodged the US system like a bullet
Bednarek - went pro after 2 years of dominating JUCO
Lyles - went pro after HS
2023 200m:
Lyles: above
Bednarek: above
Knighton: went pro as a HS sophomore
If anything, US track athletes who have gone pro early make up an usually high amount of our global medalists when you weight them against the number of people who go pro after going D1.
I had hoped he wouldn't go pro, but I get it. I bet Nike is guaranteeing him at least $10 million over the next 10 years with large bonuses for Olympic gold medals and WRs. This is just a drop in the bucket to Nike.
why in the world did you "hope" a complete stranger wouldn't go pro?
Many of the negative posters - those that keep saying “…what if he never improves,” or “…this is Drew 2.0,” etc. actually come off as if they want Cooper to fail, as if nothing would please them more. Not all of the naysayers give this impression, but it is most of them. Strange people.
We've seen this movie before, especially us older folk. Develop yourself first, then develop your athletic talents. The 800 is littered with the next "star". It has a short shelf life anyway and the physical, mental and emotional injuries are always lurking. Money, too much too soon without really earning it has "strings" ... attached to it
Goodness do I wish track contracts were public. Not only would it lead to higher parity, it would stop all these stupid arguments about whether Cooper is getting paid $75K/year or $1M/year.
Financially this was a good decision for him, but I think it was a poor decision for his development. Yes, he is physically mature already but if you listen to an interview with him it's obvious that he's socially awkward and gets nervous easily. I think the best way to get past that is to stay in that team environment with people he's comfortable around. He's not going to have that anymore training alone with just his coach and an empty track. He'll be more sheltered and have less opportunities to go out and socialize. Sure he can still be around his friends at school, but after high school is over I really don't see how he's going to get a chance to meet people and make new friends. This could just be me looking too far into it, but I want him to keep his love of the sport as he grows older. Once you turn it into a job and start putting expectations on him, that's when problems can arise.
Financially this was a good decision for him, but I think it was a poor decision for his development. Yes, he is physically mature already but if you listen to an interview with him it's obvious that he's socially awkward and gets nervous easily. I think the best way to get past that is to stay in that team environment with people he's comfortable around. He's not going to have that anymore training alone with just his coach and an empty track. He'll be more sheltered and have less opportunities to go out and socialize. Sure he can still be around his friends at school, but after high school is over I really don't see how he's going to get a chance to meet people and make new friends. This could just be me looking too far into it, but I want him to keep his love of the sport as he grows older. Once you turn it into a job and start putting expectations on him, that's when problems can arise.
pretty sure he's still gonna be training with his HS teammates he just won't be racing with them and stuff
No. You have no idea how much most sponsorship deals are. A better comparison to other sports woukd be to see how much athletes make at a diamond league meet or USATF meet.
Be a kid for as long as you can, run with other kids. At least three NCAA years enjoying the college experience.
Entering the work world at 22 is how you do it.
Completely agree. I saw somebody say that he has chosen partial over full. Those college meets are so awesome, along with the entirety of training and traveling with the team, the chaos of the DMR, etc. Nights on campus. He gave away all of that based on Isaiah Jewett not paying attention during the final strides of the semifinal.
Besides, Lutkenhaus didn't win. That's the variable many are missing. Never assign too much credit for losing. That's going on with Jessica Hull right now. She hasn't won a 1500 or mile outside Australia in more than 3 years. Yet somehow the fast times while chasing Kipyegon have mesmerized everyone into believing she's invincible if Kipyegon is not in the race.
Lutkenhaus figures to lose time and again with his late running strategy. We'll see how he handles it, or if he adapts it. He's in for a gulp of reality while trying to chase down Wanyonyi. That variable in itself would have caused me to make a different decision. Wanyonyi is very young and he never stops coming. Even when it looks like he timed it wrong and is hopelessly beaten he runs again, just like recently versus Hoey.
Is it suspicious looking, yeah. It's likely not going away.
Many of the negative posters - those that keep saying “…what if he never improves,” or “…this is Drew 2.0,” etc. actually come off as if they want Cooper to fail, as if nothing would please them more. Not all of the naysayers give this impression, but it is most of them. Strange people.
We've seen this movie before, especially us older folk. Develop yourself first, then develop your athletic talents. The 800 is littered with the next "star". It has a short shelf life anyway and the physical, mental and emotional injuries are always lurking. Money, too much too soon without really earning it has "strings" ... attached to it
He earned it in a minute and forty-two seconds. And I am an older dude. Give the kid his due. I hope he can go to the top of the world.
Be a kid for as long as you can, run with other kids. At least three NCAA years enjoying the college experience.
Entering the work world at 22 is how you do it.
Completely agree. I saw somebody say that he has chosen partial over full. Those college meets are so awesome, along with the entirety of training and traveling with the team, the chaos of the DMR, etc. Nights on campus. He gave away all of that based on Isaiah Jewett not paying attention during the final strides of the semifinal.
Besides, Lutkenhaus didn't win. That's the variable many are missing. Never assign too much credit for losing. That's going on with Jessica Hull right now. She hasn't won a 1500 or mile outside Australia in more than 3 years. Yet somehow the fast times while chasing Kipyegon have mesmerized everyone into believing she's invincible if Kipyegon is not in the race.
Lutkenhaus figures to lose time and again with his late running strategy. We'll see how he handles it, or if he adapts it. He's in for a gulp of reality while trying to chase down Wanyonyi. That variable in itself would have caused me to make a different decision. Wanyonyi is very young and he never stops coming. Even when it looks like he timed it wrong and is hopelessly beaten he runs again, just like recently versus Hoey.
Is it suspicious looking, yeah. It's likely not going away.
…and this guy here, patently jealous and obviously hoping Cooper crashes amd burns.
The kid races rather well for a 16 year old honest people will agree, and will adjust his tactics as experience dictates.
No. You have no idea how much most sponsorship deals are. A better comparison to other sports woukd be to see how much athletes make at a diamond league meet or USATF meet.
Touche, you are right but my point remains. I have NO IDEA what kind of money you can make in track in terms of sponsorship deals and or even races. I guess races like Diamond League or USATF are easier to find out with a little research, but
Cooper Flagg, formerly of Duke, signed with New Balance reportedly in the area of 13 million.
You see how in other sports these deals are being announced in mainstream media INCLUDING speculation on the terms?
I see it as a common occurrence.
In my eyes, Cooper L is a generational talent, even more so than Cooper Flagg. He just went pro as a 16 year old. Is less than 2 seconds from the all time record in the 800. He just signed with Nike, the biggest shoe brand in the world. I don't see it on ESPN and even if it is like 1million a year which pales in comparison to other sports, it is STILL a significant amount of money for a 16 year old track athlete. Put it out there! So other kids interested in the sport can SEE. Oh I can make money in this sport.
