Skip Bayless Photo Credit: Skip Bayless via YouTube
ArticlesCollege BasketballBy Arthur Weinstein on

Everyone is used to Skip Bayless’ dramatic hot takes immediately following a big game, but he might have outdone himself after Houston’s wild comeback win over Duke Saturday night.

Bayless posted on X a few minutes before midnight, “I’m about to post a video on Cooper Flagg and the clutch gene.”


Flagg, and his Duke teammates, struggled down the stretch as Houston rallied from 14 down with eight minutes remaining and went on a 9-0 run to complete a 70-67 win. Bayless specifically called out Flagg in the 15-minute video he posted on YouTube at 12:31 a.m.

Bayless linked it to an X post asking the question, “WAIT, DOES COOPER FLAGG HAVE EVERYTHING BUT THE CLUTCH GENE?” (An all-caps statement, in a post-midnight rant, is never a good sign.)


What made the video especially odd is that Bayless has praised Flagg this season. He prefaced his criticism of the Duke star by admitting that.

“This basketball season, I have been in awe of Cooper Flagg,” Bayless said. “I have proclaimed him the best white American player since Larry Bird. … On The Skip Bayless Show, I went so far as to say … my mind is open to even going along with maybe he’s in the same league as Larry Bird, because he’s got all the tools, all of which were on display all night long tonight.”

However … Bayless did not like what he saw from Flagg late in the game.

“We have to talk about the intangibles. We have to talk about my favorite term that I coined, the ‘clutch gene,'” Bayless said. “Because I was in awe of Cooper Flagg tonight, until a minute and 26 seconds remained.

“I’ve watched Cooper Flagg all year … he should be a high school senior. He is a kid among men, because Houston’s got a bunch of grown men out there. … I kept saying ‘Cooper, take it over. Cooper close the deal.'”

Bayless then ran down Bayless’ entire stat sheet and praised his overall game. Then he called him out for not being more aggressive on his final shot with eight seconds remaining, as he was guarded by Houston’s J’Wan Roberts, who Bayless called a ‘grown-a** man.”

And then Bayless dragged LeBron James into the discussion.

“I thought Cooper Flagg could put a move on (Roberts),” Bayless said. “You’ve got to go create a shot, you’ve got to have a plan, you’ve got to rise, you can jump, you can really leap, you can sky, you’ve got to find and plant and go up like you mean it and take a shot that J’Wan Roberts cannot defend. But Cooper Flagg went up with a little hesitation, it wasn’t shot with real conviction and authority … and Cooper Flagg committed the cardinal sin, he left it short. Never up, never in, I learned that in high school from my coach.

“You got to get the ball up on the rim, Coop. It’s a win-or-lose shot. … It’s a situation LeBron has always hated and I’ve always said LeBron was born without the clutch gene, and now, even though Cooper Flagg should be in high school, I have to wonder — does he have the clutch gene?

“Because somebody’s going to take him first overall and they’re going to have to wonder, does he have the clutch gene? Can you grow one at age 18 or 19? No.”

 

It was quite a take by Bayless at such a late hour, although many fans weren’t surprised.

About Arthur Weinstein

Arthur spends his free time traveling around the U.S. to sporting events, state and national parks, and in search of great restaurants off the beaten path.

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