A recent op-ed by Sheila Brennan Nee, the strategic director of the Maine Sports Commission, rightly heaps praise on the stars of the sporting world — teams, events and names — that continue to bring us all together. She writes of the “palpable sense of the community pride and the collaborative spirit that make Maine so special.”

That pride and spirit soared to stratospheric new heights at the 2025 NBA draft last week, when Newport’s Cooper Flagg became the first Mainer to be drafted No. 1 overall in a major sports league, destined for the Dallas Mavericks. A day was named in his honor. His merch disappeared from shelves. “Step aside, Stephen King,” declared sports columnist Travis Lazarczyk.

At his buzzing press conference last Wednesday, Flagg, extraordinarily poised and gracious, said it meant a lot to him to have the support of the state. As he embarks on his professional career, it means a lot to us to be able to cheer him on, to call this exemplary sportsman our own.