NCAA hoops fans react as Kon Knueppel, Cooper Flagg turn into Larry Bird at Duke practice: "This needs to be a coke or McDonald's commercial"

Duke freshman duo Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel battled each other in a shooting contest at practice on Tuesday. The two competed in a first-to-five "swish" game from 3-point range and Knueppel came out on top, hitting his five 3-pointers before Flagg did.

Flagg was the first to shoot, but he missed. Knueppel then fired from deep and opened the scoring. He hit the famous Larry Bird celebration, raising his index finger as he walked away after sinking the shot. The Maine native would later copy the same celebration after losing the contest 5-4.

"I hit the Larry too," Cooper Flagg said.

The scene then transitioned to Bird, as the Celtics legend celebrated after hitting the final shot of a three-point contest in 1988.

Hoops fans enjoyed the battle between the freshmen and reacted to the clip uploaded on X by Duke Men's Basketball. Here are a few reactions:

"This needs to be a coke or McDonald’s commercial," one fan wrote.

"As an old guy it's nice to see the young guys talking about Bird," a fan commented.

"Them tools too young to know about Larry," another said.

"Damn KON didn’t miss," one user added.

"Jay Bilas said it...these guys actually make it hard to dislike Duke," another one stated.

"Would be set for the next decade if we snagged these two together," one more wrote.

Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel look to lead Duke to its first championship in ten years

The Blue Devils last won the NCAA national championship in 2015 when Mike Krzyzewski was in charge. Since then, Duke has failed to live up to expectations, reaching the Final Four only once.

This season, Jon Scheyer's team is the favorite to win the national title as they reached the Final Four for the first time since Coach K retired.

Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel, the two new faces in Durham, have been instrumental in Duke's success in this campaign.

Flagg, the projected top overall pick in this year's draft, is averaging 18.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.4 steals per game. Knueppel, on the other hand, is second on the team in scoring behind Flagg with 14.4 points per game. He is also posting 3.9 rpg and 2.8 apg.

The Blue Devils are currently 35-3 and will face Houston in the national semifinal on Saturday. If they beat the Cougars, they will play either Auburn or Florida in the championship game.