Andy Bedard first coached Cooper Flagg in the fourth grade, well before the high school hype, the evolution of Flagg into a household name, the rise of the “kid from Maine” into the hottest basketball talent in the country.

Bedard will be at the American Airlines Center in Dallas Wednesday night when Flagg makes his official NBA debut in the Dallas Mavericks’ regular-season opener against the San Antonio Spurs. And Bedard, who coached Flagg until his junior year of high school, will be trying, once again, to get his head around what he’s witnessing.

“When the ball goes up and I see him out there, starting for the Mavericks on national TV in his first NBA game, the emotions are going to be crazy high,” Bedard said. “I still pinch myself. Is this real?”

It’s real, and so are the expectations as Flagg completes his journey from rural Maine to basketball’s biggest stage. The Newport native was the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft, following a year in which he was named college basketball’s player of the year at Duke. He’s the emerging face of a franchise, if not the sport itself.

The hype has never been higher. Those around the game, including Hall of Famers and NBA champions, are confident he’ll live up to it.

“I called him the white version of LeBron James, and I meant that, because of his IQ, his size, his athleticism,” said ESPN analyst Kendrick Perkins, who won a title with the Boston Celtics in 2008. “There are times with his rim protection where he looks like a center. And then there are times (you see) his ability to stand (out) in front of guards and quicker defenders.

“I’m very high on Cooper Flagg. I’m a huge fan of his and I think his ceiling is very high.”

Reggie Miller, an analyst for NBC Sports following a Hall of Fame career in Indiana, said Flagg’s “clearly” his pick to win Rookie of the Year. Tim Legler, an analyst at ESPN, expects a big year as well.

“He’s going to have a major impact defensively from the beginning,” he said. “His anticipation for the next rotation, for the close outs, for the weak-side helps and things like that, he’s just miles ahead of most young players coming into the league. … He’s the whole package, man.”

Neither the Mavericks nor Creative Artists Agency made Flagg available for an interview, though his trainer, Matt MacKenzie, provided insight into how he’s been approaching his debut, which will see him playing alongside superstars Anthony Davis and Klay Thompson, and against another former No. 1 pick in Victor Wembanyama.

“He’s very dialed in,” MacKenzie said. “I’ve never seen Cooper act, in any way, starstruck, or I’ve never heard him say anything along those lines. I know he feels very blessed to play with other Hall of Fame players, and I know that he’s going to really be able to soak up as much knowledge and wisdom as he can from those guys.”

Flagg averaged 11.3 points and 4.5 rebounds across four preseason contests, while displaying his trademark versatility by altering shots, knocking down open looks and finding open teammates in the half-court offense.

Chiney Ogwumike, an NBA analyst at ESPN and former WNBA No. 1 pick, said Flagg is the perfect fit for the league’s “positionless” trend of favoring players who can play different spots and handle different responsibilities on the court.

“I remember the day coming into the league as a pro, they put you in a box. ‘We see you as a forward, this is your skill set, this is where we play you on a team,’” she said. “The NBA … is now doing the opposite of that. ‘We can see you as a point guard, we can see you as a small forward, we can see you as a center in small ball.’ I love the fact that the Dallas Mavericks have the ability to either go small or go big, and lean into his strengths.”

The Mavericks ended the preseason by using Flagg, typically a forward, as a point guard. Legler said Flagg has the game to flourish in that role.

“He can handle the ball comfortably against smaller defenders who are actually even quicker that can beat him from spot to spot. He’s not affected by that,” he said. “That is one of the reasons I think the Mavericks coaching staff and Jason Kidd said ‘Hey man, put the ball in his hands and he’s got a size advantage in the half court,’ because he’s not going to be affected up the floor with this ball pressure.”

Flagg is also in a rare position that could help him acclimate and adjust to the game’s highest level. Top draft picks typically go to bad teams with depleted rosters that build themselves around their new stars and look to them to lead them back to contention.

At Dallas, which made the NBA Finals two years ago, Flagg will be surrounded by players in Davis, Thompson and point guard Kyrie Irving who have won championships, which should make for a competitive environment. He’ll be expected to make winning plays, rather than pile up stats in losses.

“He could not have asked for a better situation to be drafted in, because he does not have to be the man,” Miller said. “There won’t be as many demands on his shoulders and he can learn the game and grow being around some of these veterans.”

Richard Jefferson, who won a title in 2016 with the Cleveland Cavaliers and is now at ESPN, said Flagg’s impact will go beyond stats.

“If he averages between 15 and 17 points, Dallas is going to be a very good team. If his numbers go up above that, then I think that they’re just OK because that would imply that they’re not utilizing all the talent,” he said. “Dallas has a lot of potential, but they’ve got to bring it all together.”

Adding Flagg to the mix, Bedard said, will help with that.

“(If) Kyrie’s out and they need somebody they can put at point guard, guess who can play point guard? Cooper Flagg,” he said. “(If Davis is) out for a little bit with some injuries … guess who can go rebound? Cooper Flagg. Klay Thompson is on fire, we need to get him the ball. Guess who’s an unbelievable passer? Cooper Flagg. The situation fits his game so much.”