Denver Nuggets forward Cooper Flagg
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Cooper Flagg doesn’t look like a typical rookie anymore. His rapid growth has the Mavericks fully bought in and the numbers back it up.
Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg’s rookie season has already reached a meaningful inflection point, and Monday night offered another clear snapshot of how quickly he is growing into an NBA cornerstone.
In the Dallas Mavericks’ 113-105 win over the Brooklyn Nets on Monday, Cooper Flagg delivered a team-high 27 points while continuing to show the confidence, versatility, and competitive edge that have defined his first half-season in the league.
Flagg logged 35 minutes and finished 10-of-17 from the field, including 2-of-3 from beyond the arc. He added five rebounds, five assists, three steals, and a blocked shot, along with a 5-of-6 night at the free-throw line. The box score told one story. The context told a bigger one.
Growing Into the NBA Game Faster Than Expected
Nearly halfway through his rookie campaign, Flagg has appeared in 39 of Dallas’ 40 games. He remains the betting favorite for Rookie of the Year honors, even as his former college teammate Kon Knueppel continues to push the conversation forward. What separates Flagg, however, is not just production, it’s how rapidly his game has matured against NBA-level competition on both ends of the floot.
Through 39 games, Flagg is averaging 19.1 points, 6.4 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 2.1 combined steals and blocks per game. Those numbers alone would be impressive for any first-year player. They become even more striking when paired with the reality that Flagg spent the first two months of his NBA career playing at 18 years old.
His statistical progression mirrors his on-court comfort. During the combined October-November stretch, Flagg averaged roughly 17 points, seven rebounds, and four assists while adjusting to NBA spacing, physicality, and defensive schemes. He was even asked to play a ton of point guard with the absence of Kyrie Irving who is still nursing a torn ACL.
His efficiency from the perimeter lagged early, but December marked a noticeable turning point. Over that month, Flagg jumped to around 24 points, six rebounds, and five assists per game while shooting better than 50 percent from the field and showing sharper decision-making as a primary option.
Veteran Praise Highlights His Mental Approach
That evolution hasn’t gone unnoticed inside the locker room. Veteran sharpshooter Klay Thompson pointed to Flagg’s mindset as the foundation for his rapid growth.
“Just his willingness. His willingness to be out there every night and go through whatever,” Thompson said. “That’s gonna off pay huge dividends when the future comes. You’ve seen it, each passing week. How comfortable he is with the ball in his hands, especially at the end of the game; like he was tough. That shot at the top of the key, it takes great confidence and that’s only going to become more normal as time goes on. Mavs fans are very lucky to watch him nightly and will be for such a long time. You don’t win Rookie of the Month, consecutive months, without doing something right.”
Thompson’s comments highlight a recurring theme with Flagg: comfort under pressure. Late-clock possessions, defensive assignments on elite scorers, and physical drives to the rim no longer look like moments he’s surviving, they look like moments he’s embracing.
A Rookie Making History in Real Time
Teammate Naji Marshall echoed that sentiment while emphasizing just how unprecedented Flagg’s rise has been.
“It’s a beautiful thing to see, to just play with a talent like that,” Marshall told The Dallas Morning News. “I’m just glad that I could be of service & help him out when he needs it. It’s also history, too. Watching a guy that was in high school 2 years ago come do this in the NBA is unbelievable.”
Flagg’s development isn’t limited to scoring. He’s already grading out as a standout defender by rookie standards, using anticipation, length, and motor to disrupt passing lanes and protect the rim. His improving three-point shot, up to 35 percent since the start of December, has added another layer to his offensive profile, making him increasingly difficult to scheme against.
Half a season in, Cooper Flagg no longer looks like a rookie learning on the fly. He looks like a franchise piece accelerating ahead of schedule, earning the trust of veterans, the respect of opponents, and the long-term optimism of a Mavericks organization that appears to have found its next star far sooner than expected.