DALLAS (AP) — Cooper Flagg didn’t wait for Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison to break the silence with an opening statement as the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft was introduced to a packed Dallas news conference.
“Hello,” Flagg said about the time the clock struck noon Friday.
The 18-year-old former Duke star only grew more comfortable from there, two days after walking across the stage in Brooklyn to be greeted by Commissioner Adam Silver.
Flagg was deferential to the history of European stars Dirk Nowitzki and Luka Doncic — the latter being the generational talent traded in February, before the Mavs magically landed the potential of their next face of the franchise despite just a 1.8% chance to win the draft lottery.
The Associated Press men’s college player of the year quickly declared his love for Mexican food and barbecue — the same question all the Texas newcomers get — and easily rattled off Mount Rushmores for the NBA, and the WNBA.
For those wondering, Flagg’s NBA picks were Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, LeBron James and Kobe Bryant, and he appropriately skipped the last names of the last two. The WNBA choices were Candace Parker, Brittney Griner, A’ja Wilson and, after a brief pause to think, Caitlin Clark, “because she’s changed the game so much.”
Of course, Flagg is about to join quite a collection of names in Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis and Klay Thompson, all three with NBA titles on their resumes.
Although fellow Duke alum Irving won’t join Flagg on the court until possibly January as the nine-time All-Star recovers from a torn ACL, the Mavs are expecting a return to the playoffs after falling short in 2025, a year after Irving and Doncic led Dallas to the NBA Finals, where the Mavs lost to Boston in five games.
Throw in third-year player Dereck Lively II — another ex-Duke player, and one who visited Flagg going into his only season with the Blue Devils last fall — and there are plenty of reasons to believe Flagg gets a softer landing than many top picks who end up in rebuilding situations.
“He’s very lucky to have veterans, future Hall of Famers,” said coach Jason Kidd, a Hall of Fame point guard who was the second overall choice by the Mavericks 31 years ago. “When you talk about Kai and Klay and then AD, just understanding the vets are going to protect him and help him, and they’re going to push him.”
Flagg flew to Dallas with Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont and both of their families. Among those at the team’s practice facility near American Airlines Center was Mark Cuban, the high-profile former owner who sold a majority stake a year and a half ago to the Las Vegas-based Adelson and Dumont families and is now alternate governor.
So was Mark Aguirre, the other No. 1 overall pick by Dallas in 1981. The 65-year-old was just a few seats from Shawn Marion, who played with Nowitzki on the franchise’s only championship team in 2011.
That row also included Rolando Blackman, a former player who represented the Mavs when they won the draft lottery. It was the first time in franchise history that Dallas had moved up in the lottery.
Nearly the entire history of the 45-year-old franchise was represented when Flagg was asked about following Nowitzki, who has a statue outside the arena, and Doncic, whose departure was a heartbreaker for countless Mavs fans who no doubt got a boost with the arrival of the third one-and-done Duke player on the Dallas roster.
“I’m coming in just trying to learn and trying to get better every single day,” Flagg said. “And I think if I can do that to the best of my ability, I think expectations and pressures that other people will put on me and our team, that will kind of work itself out. So I’m just trying come in and be the best that I can be and just win at the highest level.”
The 6-foot-9 Flagg’s position is one of the more intriguing questions on the court, and the Mavs will have a void at point guard until Irving returns.
“I want to put him at the point guard,” said Kidd, who sat to Flagg’s left on a stage, with Harrison on his right. “I want to make him uncomfortable and see how he reacts.”
There wasn’t anything that made Flagg look uncomfortable on his first day in Dallas as a Mav.
___
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba
