Cooper Flagg: Mavs teenager joins Kobe Bryant in NBA history

Third time’s the charm for the Dallas Mavericks at home in the American Airlines Center. After a rough loss that once again stirred criticism toward GM Nico Harrison – the man behind the Luka Doncic trade – and even calls for his resignation, the Mavs finally exhaled with a smile. They took a wild 139–129 win on Sunday to close out their opening triple header of the season. Many in Dallas still miss the Luka era, so close yet so far, but the team has quickly rebuilt around its new hope. Cooper Flagg, the top pick and natural heir, is the spark they’ve been craving.

Flagg’s breakout moment

The former Duke standout struggled early in his new role as point guard under Jason Kidd, but against Toronto he looked far more comfortable, delivering his best performance so far. At just 18, he became only the second player in NBA history to score 20 or more points at that age without committing a single turnover – the other being Kobe Bryant in 1997. Flagg finished with 22 points, four rebounds and four assists, shooting 8-for-14 from the field. It’s exactly the kind of level Dallas hoped for when they drafted him.

Mavericks find rhythm

Flagg used his athleticism to attack more directly, looking confident in transition even if his midrange touch still needs work. His ability to involve teammates proved key – Washington and Christie each had 17, while Marshall was perfect from the floor (4-for-4). With Anthony Davis scoring 25 points on 14 shots and D’Angelo Russell adding 24, both players showed signs of chemistry that had been missing in the first two games. Russell’s role as a true facilitator could free Flagg from some of the creative load, which Kidd clearly sees as crucial for the group’s balance.

A test of Kidd’s experiment

Kidd’s decision to start Flagg – a tall forward – as floor general alongside veteran shooter Klay Thompson and three big men is a bold one. But it paid off in one respect: Dallas kept turnovers to just 12, an encouraging figure given the absence of Kyrie Irving, whose long-term injury has forced the team to improvise. The idea seems to be to push Flagg through uncomfortable scenarios so he learns fast.

Toronto falters late

The Raptors kept up with the Mavs’ fast pace for much of the game, led by Scottie Barnes’ 33 points, but collapsed in the final three minutes of the third quarter and never recovered. Toronto entered that period ahead 64–66, but a 16–4 Dallas run flipped the momentum completely. From there, Washington and Davis ensured the lead held firm.

The Mavericks needed something to reignite their reputation and their energy on the court. In Cooper Flagg, they may have found their rock star.

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Dallas Mavericks

Stats

3 Anthony Davis
25 P.J. Washington
2 Dereck Lively II
32 Cooper Flagg
31 Klay Thompson
0 Max Christie
30 Moussa Cisse
1 Jaden Hardy
14 Miles Kelly
13 Naji Marshall
16 Caleb Martin
9 Ryan Nembhard
7 Dwight Powell
5 D'Angelo Russell

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF	Val
3 Anthony Davis	34	25	10	6	4	3	3	3	2	3/8	11/13	0/1	0	2	0
25 P.J. Washington	31	17	7	1	6	5	2	1	0	4/5	5/11	1/3	0	2	0
2 Dereck Lively II	21	4	7	1	6	4	2	0	3	0/2	2/2	0/0	0	3	0
32 Cooper Flagg	28	22	4	0	4	4	0	0	1	4/4	6/8	2/6	0	5	0
31 Klay Thompson	20	10	4	0	4	3	2	0	1	0/0	2/3	2/4	0	3	0
0 Max Christie	26	17	2	0	2	2	2	1	0	4/4	2/3	3/5	0	1	0
30 Moussa Cisse	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
1 Jaden Hardy	4	2	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	2/2	0/1	0/0	0	0	0
14 Miles Kelly	2	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	1	0
13 Naji Marshall	24	12	6	1	5	3	2	2	0	4/4	4/4	0/0	0	1	0
16 Caleb Martin	11	4	1	0	1	0	1	2	0	0/0	2/3	0/0	0	5	0
9 Ryan Nembhard	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	1	0
7 Dwight Powell	2	2	2	1	1	2	1	0	0	2/2	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
5 D'Angelo Russell	29	24	5	2	3	6	2	3	0	6/8	6/11	2/7	0	2	0

Toronto Raptors

Stats

4 Scottie Barnes
3 Brandon Ingram
19 Jakob Poeltl
9 RJ Barrett
5 Immanuel Quickley
30 Ochai Agbaji
77 Jamison Battle
1 Gradey Dick
54 Sandro Mamukelashvili
2 Jonathan Mogbo
12 Collin Murray-Boyles
23 Jamal Shead
17 Garrett Temple
14 Ja'Kobe Walter
24 Chucky Hepburn
0 A.J. Lawson
55 Alijah Martin

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF	Val
4 Scottie Barnes	33	33	11	4	7	6	5	1	0	4/5	10/19	3/5	0	4	0
3 Brandon Ingram	31	22	6	0	6	3	3	2	0	0/0	8/13	2/3	0	4	0
19 Jakob Poeltl	18	4	8	5	3	4	1	1	0	0/2	2/3	0/0	0	5	0
9 RJ Barrett	27	16	4	0	4	3	1	0	0	1/2	6/10	1/3	0	4	0
5 Immanuel Quickley	31	14	5	2	3	5	1	2	0	3/3	4/9	1/7	0	3	0
30 Ochai Agbaji	21	5	3	0	3	0	0	1	0	2/2	0/1	1/4	0	2	0
77 Jamison Battle	6	3	1	0	1	0	1	0	0	0/0	0/1	1/1	0	1	0
1 Gradey Dick	13	10	2	1	1	1	0	1	0	4/5	0/2	2/4	0	1	0
54 Sandro Mamukelashvili	21	16	1	0	1	3	0	0	0	3/3	5/5	1/3	0	1	0
2 Jonathan Mogbo	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	1	0
12 Collin Murray-Boyles	13	0	2	2	0	0	1	0	0	0/0	0/3	0/1	0	1	0
23 Jamal Shead	16	6	0	0	0	8	1	1	0	1/2	1/1	1/2	0	1	0
17 Garrett Temple	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
14 Ja'Kobe Walter	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
24 Chucky Hepburn	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
0 A.J. Lawson	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
55 Alijah Martin	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0