Flagg solidifies his top pick status in a re-draft, proving the Mavericks' immediate need for a franchise cornerstone has been met.
Many thought and still think that the Dallas Mavericks trading Luka Dončić was the worst trade in NBA history. But some of those people were calmed down a bit when the team got the No. 1 pick.
And they made the very obvious pick and selected Duke superstar Cooper Flagg.
In a recent article by Bleacher Report's Zach Buckley, he re-drafts the 2025 NBA Draft. And with the first overall pick, he obviously still has the Mavericks taking Flagg as the face of their franchise.
"No notes, honestly. Dallas, still reeling from the disastrous Luka Dončić trade, needed a franchise player and found nothing less in Flagg," Buckley writes. "He's an all-purpose defender and tone-setting competitor, and his scoring is ahead of schedule. Point production wasn't billed as his greatest strength before the draft (and might not be), yet he was just stringing together 30-point outbursts like holiday lights."
Flagg arrived in Dallas with elite pedigree. He was the consensus top prospect out of Duke, winning national player of the year while putting up impressive all-around numbers.
And so far in the NBA, Flagg has absolutely backed up the hype.
The 19-year-old superstar is averaging 20 points, six rebounds, and four assists per game, and he is doing so on a solid 48 percent from the field. That is not even mentioning the superior job he has been doing on the defensive end.
Beyond the numbers, Flagg’s presence also gives Dallas a cornerstone around which to build. The Mavericks have had plenty of upheaval in recent seasons — from GM changes to roster turnover. With Flagg’s all-around game and competitive mentality, they now have a clear focal point. Stability followed by star play is the blueprint for success in the NBA, and Flagg gives Dallas exactly that.
Flagg was the right player for the franchise then, and through what’s already been a standout rookie year, he continues to justify that selection. Whether or not he ends up winning Rookie of the Year — a bona fide conversation given his and Kon Knueppel’s performances — Flagg has lived up to the expectations that came with being the No. 1 overall pick.
In a re-draft where teams are reassessing their choices, some franchises might wonder if they should have gone a different way.
Not the Mavericks.