‘Awful’ Kyrie Irving injury could actually be helpful for emerging Dallas Mavericks star, says NBA expert

Dave Jacoby sees Kyrie Irving injury as a positive for Cooper Flagg’s growth

While the Mavericks will miss Irving for major parts of next season, they will have some boost with the arrival of prodigy Cooper Flagg.

He has had NBA players speak highly of him and this includes the four-time champion LeBron James.

There is no doubt that Flagg has the talent and skillset to succeed, but the transition into the NBA is tough for any player and Dave Jacoby believes Irving’s injury will help the 18-year-old settle in.

He said: “Kyrie getting injured is terrible, terrible, awful thing for all basketball fans, but for the development of Cooper Flagg, I think it actually is helpful.

“With a healthy Kyrie, you’re looking at, ‘listen, we’re in the West, we got to contend, we got to win games’.

“But they’re going to give him a little bit of rope to have the ball, to be a lead ball handler.

In his introductory press conference, Jason Kidd had revealed that he planned on giving Flagg the point guard responsibilities.

Although Flagg did not play a lot of minutes as a guard in the Summer League, the Mavs might change that to replace Irving’s production.

“I think Kyrie being injured is obviously awful, but the silver lining on that dark cloud is that it gives Flagg a little bit of opportunity to sort of just find his way in the NBA offense,” Jacoby added.

Flagg will have support on the Mavericks

Flagg is going into a locker room with players like Davis and Thompson, who are future Hall of Famers.

They will help him settle in and instill values that are required to be great in the NBA.

James revealed that Flagg was going into a great situation in Dallas as he had veterans, who can help him at every step.

The target for the Mavericks is a championship, and Flagg could be a key player in their bid to achieve it as he can operate on both ends of the floor.

He has a great mid-range shot, but his verticality and wingspan make him a difficult player to get past for opposing players.

If the Mavs manage to stay healthy and win many games, Flagg could be the front-runner for the Rookie of the Year trophy.

But his goal will be to add to that by also being a key piece in the Mavs’ run to the championship.