Wembanyama vs Flagg: the rookie they came to see wasn’t the one who stole the show in Mavericks vs Spurs

The opening offensive play that launched the 2025–26 season between the Mavericks and Spurs was a statement in itself: Davis lobbed to Cooper Flagg, who soared toward the rim, missed the dunk, and watched Anthony Davis clean up the mess with a thunderous slam. It felt like the beginning of something new – and for a moment, it was. But the hope turned out to be a mere optical illusion.

Flagg entered the big league carrying the weight of sky-high expectations, all eyes on him at just 18 years old, fresh out of Duke, and with Jason Kidd’s full confidence. He faltered. His debut reflected that of his entire team. What followed was a blowout that reopened old wounds among Dallas fans, who once again directed their anger toward the front office – and particularly at general manager Nico Harrison – since the Luka Doncic trade. Flagg was supposed to be a fresh start, but the view of the future is already blurred.

Wembanyama’s unstoppable statement

What a beating the Mavericks took Wednesday night at the American Airlines Center: 92–125. Their renewed ambition to reclaim a spot among the West’s elite – where they stood just a year and a half ago before their roster overhaul – suddenly seemed irrelevant once Victor Wembanyama took control.

The French star had warned in recent weeks that his offseason was built on intensity, claiming no one in the NBA had trained harder or more violently than he had this summer. Numbers don’t lie: 40 points and 15 rebounds, shooting 15-for-21 from the field and 9-for-11 from the line, all in 30 minutes. But stats alone can’t capture a performance that bordered on art, showing the young Maverick what it takes to thrive when everyone expects you to be No. 1.

The Spurs took off – literally – in the second quarter. Dallas was suffocated by its own chaos, struggling just to bring the ball upcourt and praying for Kyrie Irving’s quick return. Rookie Dylan Harper, the No. 2 pick, came off the bench with 15 points in his debut, another gem in San Antonio’s youth arsenal. As the minutes ticked by, Dallas’s mistakes only multiplied. Harper and Castle joined forces with Wembanyama, who delivered back-to-back three-point plays to send the Spurs flying ahead.

A nine-point halftime lead became 21 by the end of the third quarter, and 33 by the final buzzer – the largest margin of the night. By the 4:04 mark, Dallas waved the white flag. It wasn’t worth watching any longer.

Klay Thompson opened the night with an airball and finished 4-for-13, a stat line eerily similar to the rookie beside him. Davis posted 22 points and 13 rebounds on a miserable 7-for-22 shooting night. Only Christie and late sub Nembhard provided a faint pulse from the bench. A disastrous debut all around.

Kidd’s gamble backfires

The Mavericks have gone all in on risk. Kidd’s bold summer experiment – announcing he would start Flagg at point guard to expose and correct mistakes early – came to life in this season opener. The lineup featured Lively at center, Davis operating inside-out, Washington on the wing, and Thompson as the perimeter release valve. The trouble moving the ball from backcourt to frontcourt wasn’t obvious in the 16 turnovers but was clear to every eye in the arena. This system will need serious polishing in the days ahead.

Russell, serving as a temporary Irving replacement, came off the bench but couldn’t steady the ship.

Meanwhile, Wembanyama dictated the game’s rhythm like a maestro. He not only schooled Flagg but proved that all his talk about preparation was no bluff. The Frenchman remains a phenomenon.

Flagg and Harper’s duel marked only the second time since 1966 that the No. 1 and No. 2 overall picks began their NBA journeys facing each other on opening night. The young Maverick managed to salvage his night with a couple of impressive baskets, but his performance was nervous, erratic, and forgettable. The true star, still just 21, was Wembanyama.

He painted the court with brilliance: sprinting past Davis for a thunderous dunk in transition; whipping a no-look pass to the corner for a three; spinning through Washington in the post for a double-clutch windmill; and finally, blocking Lively like he swatted a fly, then crossing him up like a guard and drilling a four-point play that even drew cheers from the Dallas crowd. Pure highlight-reel material.

Coach Johnson kept him in just long enough to hit 40 points before giving him a deserved rest – not even the league’s top scorer of the night, as Anthony Edwards later surpassed him. But Wemby’s message was clear: this season belongs to him.

Other NBA results from Opening Day 2025/26

• Magic 125 – Heat 121
• Bulls 115 – Pistons 111
• Bucks 133 – Wizards 120
• Jazz 129 – Clippers 108
• Suns 120 – Kings 116
• Blazers 114 – Timberwolves 118
• Hawks 118 – Raptors 138Hornets 136 – Nets 117
• Grizzlies 128 – Pelicans 122
• Knicks 119 – Cavaliers 111
• Celtics 116 – Sixers 117

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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
13 Naji Marshall
16 Caleb Martin
9 Ryan Nembhard
7 Dwight Powell
5 D'Angelo Russell
10 Brandon Williams
14 Miles Kelly

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF	Val
3 Anthony Davis	32	22	13	4	9	1	0	2	1	6/6	5/18	2/4	0	4	0
25 P.J. Washington	29	17	5	1	4	1	2	0	1	1/1	5/8	2/3	0	4	0
2 Dereck Lively II	10	4	2	1	1	3	1	0	0	2/2	1/2	0/0	0	5	0
32 Cooper Flagg	31	10	10	1	9	0	3	1	0	2/2	4/12	0/1	0	3	0
31 Klay Thompson	22	10	2	1	1	1	1	0	0	1/1	3/8	1/5	0	1	0
0 Max Christie	25	9	0	0	0	1	2	0	1	0/0	0/0	3/4	0	0	0
30 Moussa Cisse	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0
1 Jaden Hardy	7	3	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/1	1/2	0	1	0
13 Naji Marshall	22	3	1	0	1	1	0	0	0	3/4	0/2	0/0	0	2	0
16 Caleb Martin	4	0	1	1	0	1	1	0	0	0/0	0/1	0/0	0	0	0
9 Ryan Nembhard	15	8	0	0	0	5	3	0	0	2/2	3/4	0/1	0	0	0
7 Dwight Powell	7	0	0	0	0	1	1	1	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	2	0
5 D'Angelo Russell	15	6	2	0	2	3	1	0	0	4/6	1/5	0/1	0	2	0
10 Brandon Williams	11	0	0	0	0	2	1	1	0	0/2	0/1	0/0	0	0	0
14 Miles Kelly	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0

San Antonio Spurs

Stats

40 Harrison Barnes
30 Julian Champagnie
1 Victor Wembanyama
5 Stephon Castle
24 Devin Vassell
18 Bismack Biyombo
11 Carter Bryant
2 Dylan Harper
55 Harrison Ingram
3 Keldon Johnson
25 David Jones-Garcia
7 Luke Kornet
0 Jordan McLaughlin
27 Riley Minix

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF	Val
40 Harrison Barnes	30	7	2	0	2	1	2	0	0	0/0	2/4	1/3	0	2	0
30 Julian Champagnie	25	5	4	1	3	2	0	1	0	2/3	0/1	1/2	0	1	0
1 Victor Wembanyama	29	40	15	1	14	1	0	1	3	9/11	14/19	1/2	0	4	0
5 Stephon Castle	28	22	7	2	5	6	5	2	0	5/10	7/9	1/3	0	2	0
24 Devin Vassell	30	13	3	1	2	4	0	2	0	0/1	5/10	1/4	0	0	0
18 Bismack Biyombo	4	0	1	0	1	0	2	2	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	2	0
11 Carter Bryant	9	0	2	0	2	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/1	0/1	0	0	0
2 Dylan Harper	22	15	4	1	3	2	4	0	0	0/2	6/12	1/2	0	5	0
55 Harrison Ingram	4	3	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	1/1	0	0	0
3 Keldon Johnson	24	11	5	2	3	2	0	1	0	0/0	4/5	1/1	0	2	0
25 David Jones-Garcia	4	5	1	1	0	2	0	0	0	1/1	2/2	0/0	0	2	0
7 Luke Kornet	15	2	4	1	3	3	1	0	2	0/0	1/3	0/0	0	3	0
0 Jordan McLaughlin	8	2	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	0/0	1/1	0/1	0	1	0
27 Riley Minix	1	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0	0