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Stephen Curry Sends Clear Message to Cooper Flagg on Friday

Originally posted on Athlon Sports
By Rowan Fisher-Shotton | Last updated Jun 27, 2025 9:03 PM ET

The NBA world caught a glimpse of a full-circle moment on Friday when Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry reshared an image on his Instagram story of himself standing alongside fresh-faced No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg.

After reclassifying to join Duke in 2024, Flagg took the nation by storm, averaging 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.4 blocks and 1.4 steals per game in his lone season with the Blue Devils.

By the end of the year, he had swept virtually every national award, becoming a consensus National Player of the Year, ACC Player and Rookie of the Year.

Flagg entered the 2025 NBA draft as the consensus No. 1 pick, and the Dallas Mavericks pulled the trigger.

The photo, taken years ago at one of Curry’s famed "Curry Camp" youth clinics, carried a caption, "Curry Camp → NBA. Let’s get it! @cooper_flagg."

Having just appeared in the NBA Finals, the Mavericks came into 2024-25 season with high expectations under coach Jason Kidd.

That is, until the locker room was shaken by the blockbuster February trade that sent Luka Doncic to the Lakers in exchange for Anthony Davis.

Despite high hopes, Dallas stumbled to a 39-43 record to end the year, finishing 10th in the Western Conference and missing the play-in tournament entirely.

Entering next season, the Mavericks are scripting a new chapter built around Flagg, who joins a team ready to compete right away.

With Dereck Lively and Daniel Gafford in the frontcourt, P.J. Washington and Klay Thompson patrolling the wing, and Kyrie Irving projected to return by around the All-Star break, Dallas has quickly become one of the NBA's most intriguing teams.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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