Christmas afternoon in the Bay Area was a success with the Golden State Warriors' win over the Dallas Mavericks. Thanks to solid contributions up and down the Warriors' roster, Chase Center was in a jolly mood after the Warriors left victorious in a 126-116 win.

Despite the relative blowout nature of much of the game, the game's high scorer wasn't actually anybody from Golden State. Instead, it was the Mavericks' rookie phenom and first-overall pick from the 2025 NBA Draft, Cooper Flagg.

Flagg dropped 27 points on an efficient 13-21 shooting from the field to go with 6 rebounds and 5 assists in his 36 minutes of play. The 19-year-old was also the second-youngest player to start a Christmas Day game, just a few days younger than LeBron James was back in 2003.

After the win, Steph Curry made sure to give his props to Flagg and referenced the multiple times he's seen Flagg play in person ahead of their first matchup on Thursday. 

"I saw him at my camp a couple of years back, and I saw him again at the USA Select Team last summer. It's not surprising what he's been doing, why he was the No. 1 pick, what he did at Duke. The future is bright. He plays way beyond his years in just his basketball IQ, you can tell."

Curry also noted just how much potential Flagg has and emphasized keeping an eye on him.

"That's going to be a journey you want to stay locked in on. He's going to be around for a long time."

When Curry turns 38 in March, he'll be double Flagg's age — it's surely inspiring for Flagg to know that a veteran superstar like Curry is dishing out this high of a compliment.

Even without considering Flagg's potential to grow as his NBA career continues, his performances thus far this season are already spectacular.

The rookie is currently averaging 19.4 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 3.8 assists, and leads the NBA's rookie ladder, just ahead of his former Duke teammate, Kon Knueppel. 

He has started every game this season, playing all five positions due to the injuries the Mavs have suffered, and has been improving rapidly as the season continues. Flagg has scored at least 16 points in every game in December, averaging 24.4 points in the month compared to just 16.7 points in the first two months of the season.

This improvement was highlighted by a career-high 42-point explosion against the Jazz on Dec. 11, breaking James's record for the most points scored by an 18-year-old and becoming the youngest player to ever score 40+ points.

The sky is the limit for Flagg as he continues to get more comfortable in the NBA.