Cooper Flagg was drafted by the Mavericks and it is good due to them being championship contenders. However, that is actually doing more damage to the Cooper Flagg timeline.
Duke star Cooper Flagg's future at risk as Mavericks' win-now plan centers on Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis originally appeared on The Sporting News
The Dallas Mavericks lucked out when they won the NBA Draft Lottery. It came after they were just one win away from making the playoffs. Everyone assumed the Mavericks were going to pick Cooper Flagg with the first overall pick, but to make it even clearer, they announced it on their site before the draft.
“DLLS Mavericks reporter Kevin Gray posted on X a screenshot from Mavs' official website that displayed Flagg in Dallas' white home jersey – part of a premature ‘Welcome to Dallas’ graphic that was quickly removed from the team's site,” Yahoo Sports’ Jeremy Beren wrote.
Flagg enters the season with high expectations, but he finds himself in a strange position with the Mavericks. Not many No. 1 picks join a championship-contending team right away. Flagg may need to fail before he and the Mavericks can succeed.
“For Flagg to excel, he’ll need to lean into that exploratory work. And for the Mavericks to also excel, they would be wise — at least early on — to let him fail,” USA Today’s Lorenzo Reyes wrote.
Some believe the Mavericks are asking too much of the rookie, despite the naturally high expectations.
“The Dallas Mavericks are asking too much from Cooper Flagg. Fans should temper expectations for his rookie season. Flagg is a generational prospect and will be a standout for years to come, but year one will feature struggles as he adjusts to the NBA and being a primary creator. The Mavs have nobody to blame but themselves,” The Smoking Cuban’s Tyler Watts wrote.
Follow The Sporting News on WhatsApp
The Mavericks are in a tough spot—they need to build around Flagg’s future, but they are in win-now mode. This could be disastrous for Flagg’s long-term development.
“However, Dallas finding win-now assets could affect the long-term future of the team in hopes of trying to build around Flagg. It's a balancing act that won't be easy to navigate,” The Smoking Cuban’s Jeremy Brener wrote.
With more veterans than young players on the team, the Mavericks present a dangerous environment for Flagg. He may end up going through the rookie development process in reverse—his first few years could go well, but the typical rookie struggles might come later, instead of sooner.
Category: General Sports
