Cooper Flagg struggles in debut, but wins matchup with Bronny James
Pick any possible emotion. Cooper Flagg was feeling it.
It showed in his first two shot attempts — a turnaround jumper that hit the far right rim and a missed 3-pointer that didn’t look smooth leaving Flagg’s hands.
He went to the bench to rest for a minute. His next two possessions were a steal and a one-handed dunk, followed by a turnaround jumper on the baseline.
“I was excited. Obviously a little nervous,” Flagg said. “It’s a new environment, a lot of new fans.”
Flagg, the No. 1 pick in June’s NBA draft, was held to 10 points on 5-of-21 shooting in 32 minutes in his Dallas Mavericks debut. But he stuffed the stat sheet in an 87-85 win over the Los Angeles Lakers before a near-sellout crowd on the first day of the NBA Summer League on Thursday at the Thomas & Mack Center.
The former Duke forward made up for his rough shooting night with six rebounds, four assists, three steals and a last-minute block on Lakers guard DJ Steward, leading to a go-ahead 3-pointer from point guard Ryan Nembhard — assisted by Flagg — with 1:03 remaining.
“Coaches had a lot of confidence in me,” said Flagg, the second first overall pick in Mavericks history. “They wanted me to experiment and try new things.”
Flagg’s new team showed out in full support.
Mavericks coach Jason Kidd, star guard Kyrie Irving, forward P.J. Washington, majority owner Patrick Dumont and partial owner Mark Cuban were among those in attendance.
“I definitely heard them,” Flagg said. “That was cool of them to show support for us.”
Tickets in demand
The average ticket to watch the main event cost $223 on secondary ticket seller Vivid Seats.
It wasn’t near the going rate of $293 for the NBA debut of San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama in 2023, but the marquee matchup was in high demand.
The heavy Lakers contingent was on hand to watch guard Bronny James in his second Summer League stint.
James, the son of Lakers star LeBron James, hit his first two shots. Those were his only two field goals in eight attempts, as he finished with eight points, two rebounds and two assists in 21 minutes.
The Lakers made it a point to attack Flagg defensively with double teams and halfcourt traps. James even found himself guarding Flagg on a couple of possessions.
The 6-foot-3-inch James held his own at times against the 6-9 Flagg, which was met with notable roars from the Lakers crowd.
Flagg returned the favor in the second quarter with a turnaround, 17-foot fadeaway with James guarding him.
The Mavericks overcame Flagg’s struggles to turn a four-point halftime deficit into a six-point lead after three quarters.
The undrafted Nembhard piloted the comeback with a team-high 21 points and five assists.
“I thought tonight, in the first half, we just kind of stood and watched Cooper play,” Mavericks summer league coach Josh Broghamer said. “In the second half, we did a much better job of everybody playing basketball.”
Not that any games between the Lakers and Mavericks need extra fanfare. These teams are bound to be linked together for the foreseeable future following last season’s blockbuster trade involving stars Luka Doncic and Anthony Davis.
A game with Summer League stakes wouldn’t have drawn much attention if the Mavericks — one year removed from making the NBA Finals — hadn’t missed the playoffs and won the draft lottery for the first time.
That allowed the Mavericks to draft Flagg and pair him with Irving and Davis, a perfect scenario for an incoming top draft pick.
Will play again in Las Vegas
The teams will meet again in a preseason game in October at T-Mobile Arena. The environment should carry more of an NBA feel with the star power expected for that game.
Consider this a tuneup for Flagg.
“Just got to find a rhythm. It’s a different environment,” Flagg said. “Obviously very different from college, probably different from what the real NBA is going to be like. I’m not necessarily worried, but obviously not happy with how it went.”
The Review-Journal is owned by the Adelson family, including Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont.
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Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.