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Cooper Flagg will hopefully be the player who helps Dallas fans and the Mavericks get on speaking terms again.
The Dallas Mavericks' season ended six weeks ago, back on April 18. That wrapped up what might be the most insane 10-month stretch any American pro sports franchise has ever seen.
Let’s take a look, shall we? The Mavericks:
Deployed a lineup so decimated by injury that they almost had to forfeit games.
Said generational superstar returned to Dallas for one game, where he cried on camera. The crowd serenaded him with standing ovations throughout as he dominated the game.
Made the play-in tournament but failed to reach the true playoffs, finishing the season with the 11th-best odds in the NBA’s Draft Lottery with a 1.8% chance of landing the top pick.
Welcome to the modern-day Dallas Mavericks!
I’ve written here before about growing up in North Texas and loving the Mavs as one of my teams. Just a few months back, I expressed the sheer shock of trading our version of Jordan in Luka Doncic. When the trade happened, a lot of Mavs fans, including me, weren’t sure how we would progress with all this moving forward.
We love Luka, but we also love the “Dallas” on the front of the jersey.
Since the Feb. 1 trade, it has felt like Mavs fans have divided into three categories: the “I’m done with the franchise” group, the “not sure where to go moving forward” camp, and, thirdly, the “telling the other two groups to F-off and get over it” collective.
Personally, I reached the point where I simply needed this season to end. I needed to not have to talk about the Mavs on my radio show, watch the Mavs, or think about the Mavs for a few months so I could regroup, come back ready to go in the fall, and accept the new-look lineup. Sometimes, you just need a break.
And then May 12 happened. The Mavericks, who had been in the NBA’s draft lottery 16 times, had never received a pick higher than they’re final spot in the standings suggested, let alone the No. 1 pick. Hell, I was mowing my yard when the draft lottery took place. What’s the point of watching them get awarded the 11th pick, I thought?
And then it happened. We won.
That 1.8% chance hit, and the Mavericks, for just the second time in franchise history, will have the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft on June 25, which will be forever known in Dallas as Flagg Day.
To be sure, Cooper Flagg is not the new version of former Duke stars like Christian Laettner or Cherokee Parks. This is a game-changing kid who will not turn 19 until December. Many people who have been involved in college or professional basketball for the bulk of their lives believe that Flagg is a generational talent. ESPN’s Seth Greenberg said, “He’s got a little Jayson Tatum in his game, a little Grant Hill in his game, a little Scottie Pippen in his game. A 6’9” guy you can run your offense through. A 6’9” guy that can defend multiple positions.”
Sign me up for that! We had ESPN’s Jay Bilas on my radio show the day after the draft lottery. Keep in mind that Bilas went to Duke, was an assistant coach for three seasons under Hall of Fame Coach Mike Kryzyeski, and has been around the program for years. Bilas said of Flagg: “At age 18, it’s absurd, he’s the best freshman Duke’s ever had. He’s the most complete and the most accomplished. At that age, where he is, it gives you a pretty good feeling about the trajectory.”
Read that again. The best freshman Duke’s ever had.
Kyrie Irving, Dereck Lively, Zion Williamson, Jayson Tatum, Paolo Banchero and Wendell Carter Jr. are some of the players who just played one year at Duke. And the trusted expert Bilas believes Flagg is better than any of those guys at this point. The excitement of being able to pass the torch to a player like Flagg should be enough to bring many Mavs fans back into the AAC with a positive mindset.
If the front office's “defense wins championships” mantra is true, Flagg will only help to boost that with his abilities. As Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving age, Flagg is the future of the franchise. A true superstar-level talent, they can begin to build around after AD and Kyrie submit to Father Time.
Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd was on our radio show recently and while he won’t say the name “Cooper Flagg,” I asked him about “the kid from Duke,” and this is what he had to say: “The young man from Duke is very talented. When you talk about [how] he’s 18 years old, it’s amazing, his maturity, and [his] look on both sides of the floor. Defensively, he’s not afraid to guard. Offensively, he’s not afraid to shoot, he can play off the dribble. As a coach, it becomes exciting; as a teammate, it’s exciting. When you talk about a young man like that, he does bring a lot to the table.”
Trust me, J-Kidd, I’m right there with you.
The excitement of the future and what Flagg might be in Dallas – a homegrown talent that can once again put us on the national map of basketball – is what we crave.
Luka did that. Luka made the Mavs nationally relevant in a way we’d never had before. It made the networks put our Mavs on primetime TV on Christmas Day. It made fans in other arenas turn out to see our team and our guy. When you traveled for vacation, you’d talk to someone local about basketball, “Oh, you’re from Dallas? I wish we had Luka.” Flagg has the chance to put Dallas in that spot once again. The opportunity to have “that guy” once again is something I think we can all enjoy and get behind.
If you’ve ever been in a relationship that ended, even unexpectedly, maybe you had (or have) no idea how you were going to move on, but eventually you did. Chances are, you met someone else and realized that life can go on, and you can enjoy those moments again. Sure, it’ll be different, but those moments can be just as exciting and just as enjoyable. Maybe, just maybe, even more enjoyable and exciting. Cooper Flagg will wear that “Dallas” across his chest, and once again, we’ll all feel that joy in pulling for our Dallas Mavericks. Flagg Day is June 25 this year. Get ready for it because, in a year that has already witnessed our team change in unimaginable ways, Flagg Day is sure to do that again.