The Dallas Mavericks are observing keenly.
This weekend, standout Cooper Flag, the top pick from the 2025 NBA Draft, was taken out of the Summer League games—not due to an injury, but as a calculated choice by the Mavericks based on what they had seen.
Flag had a modest start, scoring just 10 points in his first game with the Lakers, shooting 5 for 21. He rebounded impressively in his second game against the Spurs, racking up 31 points with a shooting stat of 10 for 21, alongside four rebounds in 31 minutes of play.
“It’s a new environment, definitely,” Flag remarked after his best summer game during the Spurs match. “They want me to be more aggressive. I just, you know, tried to be that way.”
He added, “I got to the line more during that game, which helped me feel comfortable. Still, I missed quite a few free throws.”
Despite the Mavericks’ 76-69 loss to the Spurs, Flag’s performance—complete with several eye-catching dunks—suggested he had done enough to impress until training camp begins.
According to reports, Dallas has officially decided to sit Flag for the rest of the Summer League to safeguard their promising rookie ahead of the regular season.
Born on December 21, 2006, and at just 18 years old, Flag was reclassified academically, enrolling with Duke for the 2024-25 season. This makes him one of the youngest players in the current NBA Draft class.
During his time at Duke, he boasted impressive averages of 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game, earning accolades like ACC Player of the Year while guiding the Blue Devils to the Final Four.
On a national level, he also won the Wooden and Nice Miss Awards for Player of the Year and received consensus recognition as a top player.
The Mavericks acquired Flag in the 2025 NBA Draft Lottery, a few months after making significant trades involving Luka Doncic prior to the February deadline.
