Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg earns first NBA win in best performance yet 

Knowing the pressure and hype the 2025 No. 1 overall pick is dealing with, one of Flagg's veteran teammates couldn't help but shower the rookie with a big compliment after the game. 

"Unbelievable, he's just getting started. Everybody is chasing that flag," said D'Angelo Russell, one of only two Mavericks to outscore Flagg in the game.

For an interesting development, Flagg's best game came in his fewest minutes logged out of the three he's played so far. 

Prior to Sunday, Flagg surpassed 30 minutes in each of the first two games of his career — he was on the court for 32 minutes on Oct. 22 against the Spurs and then 35 on Friday night in a loss to the Wizards. 

Flagg has steadily improved in each game. He followed up a rocky debut, shooting only 30.8%, granted he did post a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds, by scoring 18 thanks to drilling 6-of-14 shots. 

Dallas made Flagg, who was named the National and ACC Player of the Year for the 2024-25 college basketball season, the new face of their franchise after benefiting from some draft lottery luck in June.