Cooper Flagg's rookie season with the Mavericks has gotten off to a somewhat shaky start. The No. 1 pick in the 2025 draft struggled in his debut, scoring only 10 points on 13 shots as Dallas coach Jason Kidd experiments with Flagg playing point guard. He found his footing over the next two games and broached the 20-point mark for the first time against the Raptors. But Monday brought a stroke of bad luck.
Playing against the defending champion Thunder, Flagg suffered a shoulder injury in the first quarter that clearly hindered him throughout the rest of the contest. He toughed it out to stay on the court but the rookie finished with only two points on 1-for-9 shooting in 31 minutes. Notably, Kidd chose to bench Flagg for the final minutes of what wound up a narrow 101-94 loss. An understandable decision in light of the injury but undoubtedly a foreign feeling for Flagg given he's been viewed as one of the best NBA prospects ever for the last three or so years.
Speaking to the media about it afterwards, Flagg recognized that he wasn't used to watching from the sideline in crunch time but offered a mature response to the benching.
"The way the game was going, we had a group out there that was doing really well and was on a run, so I see where Coach was at with that," Flagg told reporters, via ESPN's Tim MacMahon. "And I mean, I was flat. I wasn't myself. I wasn't impacting the game at a high level, wasn't doing the right stuff. So obviously, that's an easy decision for Coach. He was just out there trying to win the game."
Flagg is 20 years old and in the early days of his NBA career yet responded like a veteran to the decision. The Mavs must be pleased.
Kidd echoed Flagg's thoughts on why he was sidelined to end the game while praising his toughness for fighting through the shoulder issue.
"It wasn't his night tonight," Kidd said. "We're a team, and so understand that the group that was out there put us in the position to win the game. He wasn't on the floor, but he was cheering for his teammates."
It all lines up. If anything Flagg's statline reflects his struggles that evening but even fans could tell the young forward wasn't right when he was on the floor after getting hurt. Dallas has to love his team-forward response.
Flagg's availability is to be determined for the Mavs' next matchup against the Pacers on Wednesday night.
Cooper Flagg injury
While it wasn't obvious to start Flagg's injury became apparent as Monday night's game went on. During his bench stints the rookie had to wear a huge wrap on his shoulder. MacMahon reported it looked like Flagg took a shot on the very first possession of the game, which if true meant he was playing at less than 100% the entire night. It goes a long way towards explaining his brutal shooting numbers.
Speaking on the situation afterwards Flagg downplayed the injury and discussed possible treatment options.
"We're going to probably get some scans or whatever, make sure everything's all clean, but I feel like it's just a little sore," he said. "Just want to keep an eye on it, ice it, do some rehab and should be good to go."
He also downplayed the impact it had on his play.
"I think it was fine," said Flagg. "I think in general, one of the biggest differences from college to this level is handling & preparing for a back-to-back like that, physically. That was something I was going through tonight anyway, just being a little flat. A little banged up, but you gotta find ways to play through it to be successful."
