Mavs phenom Cooper Flagg swaps the court for late-night laughs, joining Jimmy Fallon on "The Tonight Show" for a national spotlight beyond basketball.
DALLAS - It speaks to the rising popularity of Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg, no doubt.
Of course, it also speaks to the fact that the NBA is now on NBC, and that promotion of the product is a primary goal.
Nevertheless, this is fun ... as Dallas' teenage sensation is heading toward an appearance on late-night television.
Flagg is slated to be a guest on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' on Monday.
The show, scheduled to air at 10:30 p.m. CT on the network, will also feature comedian Tracy Morgan, actress Neve Campbell, and musical guest TWICE, the South Korean girl group.
This adds another national spotlight moment to Flagg's first season in the NBA ... though all of the other headline-grabbing stuff about the Duke product's debut season with the Mavs has highlighted his work on the court.
And what about that work?
The 6-foot-9 "point-forward'' is averaging 20.4 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 4.1 assists in 34 minutes per game while shooting 48.2 percent from the field and 80.4 percent from the free-throw line.
He was taken first overall in the 2025 NBA Draft and the payoff as the potential heir to Luka Doncic (traded away a year ago to the Los Angeles Lakers) has been immediate.
As our colleague Grant Afseth notes, "Flagg became the youngest player in NBA history to score 40 or more points in a game and later set the teenage single-game scoring record with 49 points in late January. That 49-point, 10-rebound performance made him the first rookie since Michael Jordan in 1985 to post a 49-and-10 line.
"He also put together four consecutive 30-point games, becoming the youngest player in league history to accomplish that feat. During that stretch, he became the first rookie since Allen Iverson in 1997 to score at least 150 points over a four-game span — placing him in statistical company typically reserved for franchise-altering prospects.
Flagg is dealing with left foot sprain that he sustained just before the All-Star Break, and the Mavs list him as day-to-day now.
As it happens for the Mavs (19-36 and buried in 12th place in the NBA West), the second half of the season soon takes them to New York. They play at the Pacers on Sunday and at Brooklyn on Tuesday ... time enough for Flagg - and the NBA - to be showcased on national TV in a way that goes beyond basketball.