A 'Bigger, Better' Cooper Flagg? Teenager Embraces Mavs Leadership Role

Cooper Flagg is working on being more of a leader in his second season with the Dallas Mavericks, the reigning Rookie of the Year said after Wednesday's practice.

Communication is part of what Flagg wants to add in Year 2.... but that's not the only thing about him that's growing.

Flagg, 19, has gained an inch since last year, up to 6-10. And there is talk he's also added some bulk to his 205-pound frame.

But let's focus on leadership ...

"Trying to be, yeah. That's a big thing, obviously. Trying to grow up quick, be as much of a leader as I can be, and help communicate and get everybody on the same page," Flagg said.

Dallas took Flagg first overall in the 2025 NBA Draft. He averaged 21.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 4.5 assists in 70 games and led the Mavericks in points, rebounds, assists, and steals. He was the first rookie to lead his team in all four categories since Michael Jordan.

On April 3, Flagg scored 51 against Orlando. He became the youngest player in NBA history with a 50-point game.

Flagg won Rookie of the Year with 56 of the 100 first-place votes, finishing ahead of former Duke teammate Kon Knueppel of the Charlotte Hornets. Dallas went 26-56.

He shot 46.8% from the field, 29.5% from three on 3.5 attempts per game, and 82.7% from the free-throw line. At Duke, he made 38.5% of his 3-pointers in his only college season.

Masai Ujiri took over as president of basketball operations in May. At media day, Ujiri made rebuilding the connection between the team and its fans a priority.

A foundation comes first for Flagg.

"Just the culture. Masai came in and he set out with one goal: to just change the culture back to winning, competing. And that's really what we've tried to do so far through this summer and the start of training camp, is just really building that culture first and building a foundation," Flagg explained. "And we have to build up from there. We can't skip steps. We can't jump past things. We just have to start at the bottom and build our way up."

Dusty May is in his first NBA season after coaching Michigan to the 2026 national championship. Flagg said May's gratitude for being part of a team again has spread through the roster.

"He's great. He's a leader. You can tell he really cherishes being a part of a team again, sharing his experience with all of us," Flagg said. "Him having that gratitude, I think it extends to everybody else. Everybody else feels grateful, and it gives you that perspective of just being grateful for being on a team. And I think it's allowed us all to kind of get on the same page."

Offensive rebounding, playing fast, conditioning, and trusting the pass have been May's biggest points of emphasis in camp, according to Flagg.

Flagg averaged 1.2 steals and 0.9 blocks as a rookie. May has no number in mind for Year 2.

"I can't imagine that doesn't go up. Once you get to a point, it goes up exponentially," May said Monday. "He's a quick jumper with anticipation skills, so I would anticipate his blocks would be up. So yeah, I can't give you a number."

Losing was new to Flagg last season. He won a national title at Montverde Academy and reached the Final Four at Duke before Dallas lost 56 games.

Adapting on the fly was the lesson he took from it.

"Tough, obviously. Never want to lose, never gonna be okay with losing games, but just finding ways to learn from the losses better, knowing that you're not gonna win every game. It's not possible," Flagg said at media day Sept. 25. "So just taking that for what it's worth and trying to learn from every experience, good, bad, in between."

"And knowing that when we are losing, we have to find ways to adapt and change and get better on the fly. And I think that's something that I learned and got better with all through the year last year," Flagg added.

Kyrie Irving missed all of last season with a torn ACL in his left knee. He and Flagg have never played a regular-season game together. Klay Thompson, who spent two seasons in Dallas, was bought out Aug. 21 and has since joined the Miami Heat.

Dallas opened training camp on Sept. 26 with 20 players. Flagg has never been to China, and the Mavericks play the Houston Rockets twice in Macao before three more preseason games.

The regular season opens Oct. 21 in Houston. The home opener is Oct. 24 against the San Antonio Spurs at 7 p.m. CT.