Mavericks Earn Second Shot at Contention via Cooper Flagg

For now, the Dallas Mavericks organization and its fans are sidelined for the Western Conference Finals, a place they were a year ago. But they might not be for long.

In February, the team made the now-infamous move to trade off superstar Luka Doncic, the supernova that led them to the NBA Finals last season. The trade — for star Anthony Davis, Max Christie and a first round pick — had the league as a whole reeling at the time, and only seemed worse as Davis was hurt shortly after.

When Dallas was eliminated in the NBA Play-In at the conclusion of the regular season — paired with star Kyrie Irving’s torn ACL — things seemed dire. 

Things only started looking up a week ago, when Dallas cashed in on its 1.8% chance to land the No. 1 pick at the 2025 NBA Draft Lottery. In doing so, they effectively landed Duke superstar Cooper Flagg, who should help the team return to contention sooner rather than later.

A 6-foot-9 forward, Flagg was a force with the Blue Devils, averaging 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 1.4 steals and blocks apiece. He led his squad all the way to the Final Four, earning multiple player of the year awards in the process, all while posting some of the best advanced metrics for a true freshman since Zion Williamson.

Suffice it to say, Flagg is a talent that should hit the ground running in the NBA.

While he won’t replicate Doncic’s production — especially as a rookie — he’s sure to add plenty as both a scorer and defender early in his career. In accounting for Davis at the five, and the eventual return of Irving, the team has talent that could see it through the West in a few years.

Most importantly is Flagg’s youth, which offers the team flexibility money-wise for the foreseeable future. Talented players on rookie contracts will be key to competing in the modern NBA given new CBA limitations. And Flagg will surely be one of the better early contracts in the league.

All Dallas has to do now is wait until the 2025 NBA Draft on Wednesday, June 25 to select Flagg.