'Learn as Much as You Can:' Dallas Mavericks Legend Dirk Nowitzki Reveals Key Advice for Cooper Flagg

During an interview with Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News, NBA legend Dirk Nowitzki opened up about what advice he has for Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg.

Nowitzki, the greatest player in Mavericks franchise history, hasn’t met Flagg in person yet, but the two have spoken via text message.

Flagg, the first pick in the 2025 NBA Draft out of Duke, enters a great situation in Dallas, as he has Anthony Davis, Klay Thompson and Kyrie Irving as his veterans.

Davis, Thompson and Irving have combined to win six NBA championships.

“I’m not quite sure I can help him with advice,” Dirk Nowitzki said. “The only thing is keep your eyes and ears open. Keep learning from your veterans. He’s got some incredible players on the team now with Kyrie, obviously Klay. AD’s been around forever. There’s so much knowledge there that he can tap into and learn from.

“Ask questions. How are their pregame routines? What do they eat? How do they prepare for events? What do they do with appearances? How do they interact with the media? That was key for me at the beginning, watching Michael Finley, who was a true pro. Steve Nash, learning from them.”

Flagg, who averaged 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.4 blocks in college, is expected to have a high usage rate in 2025-26 since Irving will miss a chunk of the season recovering from his left ACL tear.

Dallas head coach Jason Kidd is expected to start D’Angelo Russell, Thompson, Flagg, Davis and Daniel Gafford to begin next season. Once Irving returns from his ACL injury, he will replace Russell in the starting lineup.

“I think that’ll be my advice. Learn as much as you can,” Dirk Nowitzki said. “Soak it all up and eventually use it and find your own routine. Find your own way of leading. I don’t think there’s just one way to do it. I think a team can see through some stuff if they think, ‘This is not him.’ or ‘This is fake.’ You want to be as natural as possible and be yourself and find your own way of leading.

“But at the beginning, it’s all about learning and keeping your eyes and ears open. There will be some tough times. It’s not an easy transition. It’s the best league in the world. Work through the kinks and go from there.”

Flagg shot 5-of-21 from the floor and 0-of-5 from 3 in his Summer League debut against the Los Angeles Lakers. The swingman finished with 10 points, six rebounds and four assists in 31 minutes.

To no one’s surprise, Flagg bounced back in a big way in his second Summer League outing against the San Antonio Spurs. The talented swingman went off for 31 points while shooting 10-of-21 from the field and 3-of-9 from beyond the arc, showing the entire NBA world why the Mavericks drafted him with the first pick.

Cooper Flagg is the betting favorite to win the 2025-26 Rookie of the Year Award. It will be fascinating to see how the youngster performs for the Mavericks, who missed the 2025 playoffs after reaching the 2024 NBA Finals.