Dallas Wings' Paige Bueckers Stars for Team USA at FIBA World Cup; Mavs' Cooper Flagg is Next

The state of professional basketball in Dallas is a good one, and it's expected to stay that way for quite a while.

The Mavericks are led by second-year star Cooper Flagg, whose NBA Rookie of the Year honor last season put him in esteemed company with some of the best starts to a career in league history.

The Wings have upped the Mavs with two former No. 1 overall picks on their roster, 2025 WNBA Rookie of the Year Paige Bueckers and the 2026 top pick, Azzi Fudd.

Bueckers has long admired Mavericks veteran and future Hall of Famer Kyrie Irving, and as the point guard makes his long-awaited return from injury this fall, he'll be joined by Bueckers' Wings as neighbors within American Airlines Center.

But first, Bueckers is spending her late summer competing for Team USA at the FIBA World Cup in Berlin.

Across three group play games, the former UConn star has averaged 10.3 points and 3.7 assists in about 20 minutes per game.

Her most productive outing came in the opener, a 94-61 throttling of China where Bueckers' 14 points co-led the team next to Rhyne Howard and Caitlin Clark.

Against Italy, the Americans barely escaped an upset defeat by winning 55-52 despite shooting just 28.6 percent from the field.

"I think there's learning experiences and growth from every single game," Bueckers said, via BasketballNetwork.net. "But to be challenged like this early, for our group, I think it's great for us in the long run. I mean, we've been together here for five days."

Team USA built its chemistry with a 105-64 win over Czechia on Monday, Sep. 8, which qualifies them for the Quarterfinals.

Bueckers outlined her mindset after getting through group play and turning her attention to the do-or-die bracket.

"To grow through this experience, learn what we need to get better at, but have confidence in our ability to find ways to win," she said. "But also have room for growth and know that there's so much that we need to get better at; I think it'll do best for us."

READ MORE: Sergio De Larrea's FIBA Showing Exposes Mavs Backcourt

Bueckers' play in FIBA isn't just an appetizer for what she will bring to the AAC in front of the largest average crowd she will have seen since joining the W. It's also a preview for the experience Flagg might have next summer in Qatar.

The men's FIBA World Cup, which takes place every four years, is scheduled for next summer and will likely feature the Mavs' budding star.

Flagg represents a key piece of America's next generation of basketball talent as the likes of LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry and others near the end of their playing careers.

The 2028 LA Olympics are likely out of the cards for those names, paving the way for Olympic returners such as Anthony Edwards, Bam Adebayo, Tyrese Haliburton and Jayson Tatum to take the torch for Team USA.

All signs point to Flagg joining that bunch when he gets introduced to the senior national team next summer on the FIBA circuit.