Cooper Flagg’s NBA Summer League debut vs. Bronny James, Lakers draws impressive TV viewership

As the NBA Summer League got started, all eyes turned to Las Vegas for one of the most anticipated debuts in recent memory. Cooper Flagg was gearing up for his first game with the Dallas Mavericks as they took on Bronny James and the Los Angeles Lakers.

It lived up to the billing. In the process, it turned into a huge TV ratings victory for ESPN with impressive viewership numbers.

The game averaged 955,000 viewers and peaked at 1.1 million, according to Sports Media Watch. In the process, it became the fourth-most watched NBA Summer League game on the network – trailing only Zion Williamson’s debut in 2019 (1.6 million), Victor Wembanyama’s debut in 2023 (1.39 million) and the Lakers vs. Boston Celtics matchup in 2017.

Flagg’s first game with the Mavericks brought out plenty of star power at the Thomas & Mack Center, and he had a solid showing. He totaled 10 points to go with six rebounds, four assists and three steals in 31 minutes of action. However, after the game, he made it clear he wasn’t very happy with his performance.

“Not up to my standard,” Flagg told ESPN’s Katie George after the game. “I’m going to regroup, I’ll be alright. You know, this new feeling, new environment, new teammates. But the guys held it down. … They had my back. I didn’t have my best game, but I’m just going to keep growing moving forward.”

On the flip side, James played 21 minutes as he gets ready for his second NBA season with the Lakers. He had eight points, two rebounds and two assists while also getting the task of guarding Flagg in the matchup.

After the first quarter, James broke down what he saw from the former Duke star. He pointed out the difficulty of guarding his size and athleticism, which helps Flagg get to the basket with ease.

“He’s just a quick, powerful big,” James told George after the first quarter. “We’ve got to do everything we can to stop him and slow him down. But he’s a great player and he’s going to get his sometimes. Just got to do a great job of [slowing] him down.”

Cooper Flagg, Bronny James were two top names in college

Bronny James and Cooper Flagg both arrived in the NBA as the biggest names on their respective draft boards. James ended his lone year at USC with a $3.2 million On3 NIL Valuation, which at the time ranked No. 1 in the college basketball NIL rankings. The son of LeBron, he built a strong social media following, which played a role in that figure.

Flagg, meanwhile, arrived at Duke this past year as the top recruit in the country and led the Blue Devils to the Final Four. As a result, his On3 NIL Valuation soared to $4.8 million, which also ranked No. 1 in the college basketball rankings and No. 2 in the On3 NIL 100, the first of its kind and defacto NIL ranking of the top 100 high school and college athletes ranked by their On3 NIL Valuation.

As a result, the buzz grew quickly when the NBA scheduled the Lakers and Mavericks to square off in the NBA Summer League opener. It certainly lived up to the billing as the Mavs held on for a thrilling 87-85 victory to start things off.