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Tim MacMahon
INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Cooper Flagg packed a lot of history into the Dallas Mavericks’ back-to-back games against the NBA’s two Los Angeles squads.
On Friday night, Flagg dished out 11 assists, the most ever by an 18-year-old, in a loss to the Lakers.
Twenty-four hours later, Flagg became the youngest player to score 35 points in a game, a feat that was much more satisfying because it occurred as he led an injury-depleted Dallas team to a 114-110 win over the Clippers at the Intuit Dome.
“He’s only 18 years old, but he seems like he’s been in this league before,” Mavs coach Jason Kidd said. “He did it all tonight. He had the ball. You can call it point guard or whatever, but he ran the offense for us. He drove the ball. The ball touched the paint. He got to the rim, got to the free throw line, stepped up and made free throws for us late. Just his composure on both ends [was impressive]. He competes at a very high level. You saw that tonight, but you saw that last night, too.”
LeBron James is the only other 18-year-old to score 35 points in an NBA game, having done so twice as a rookie for the Cleveland Cavaliers in December 2023. James’ first 35-point game occurred when he was 18 years, 348 days old, five days older than Flagg on Saturday night.
The highlight of Flagg’s career-high scoring outing was a spectacular drive and two-hand dunk over Clippers center Ivica Zubac, an All-Defensive selection last season. Flagg attacked the basket relentlessly throughout the game, going 13-of-22 from the floor with eight buckets within three feet of the basket.
“Being aggressive right now is obviously right for me, and that’s what Coach has stressed to me,” said Flagg, who also had eight rebounds and two assists in 38 minutes. “I’ve got to be aggressive, and we’ll live with some of the mistakes, but you just have to be aggressive and trust all the work. My teammates are extremely confident in me, and I feel that. And when they’re confident in me, it enables me to just be free up there.”
Flagg, who had struggled in the second night of his previous back-to-backs, started the game hot, scoring 12 points in the first quarter and 21 in the first half. He also finished strong, keeping his poise after a couple of costly turnovers in the fourth quarter to score eight points in the final 2 minutes, 47 seconds.
“Cooper’s upside is limitless,” Mavs shooting guard Klay Thompson said. “He has every tool to be great. Sometimes I can’t believe he should be a freshman in college.”
It was Flagg’s oldest teammate, the 35-year-old Thompson, who made sure the rookie No. 1 pick had an opportunity to close out the Clippers. Thompson scored 17 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter, the sort of sizzling streak he was famous for while starring on four championship teams with the Golden State Warriors.
Thompson, who was briefly listed as out due to right knee soreness on the official injury report Saturday before changing his mind after a swim in the ocean, was 6-of-8 from the floor and 4-of-6 from 3-point range in the fourth quarter. His 28-footer with 1:52 remaining gave the Mavs the lead for good.
“It felt like a relief,” Thompson said. “I haven’t shot the ball well these first 20 games, at least not to my standard. So when you have a night like that after the tough start we’ve had, it just gives you relief to keep going. It really inspires me to be out there as much as I can.”
It has been a rough start for Thompson and the 6-15 Mavs, who got more bad news a couple of minutes before tipoff when starting forward P.J. Washington landed on a basketball and sprained his right ankle. Washington joined Kyrie Irving (knee surgery), Anthony Davis (calf injury management), Daniel Gafford (ankle injury management) and Dereck Lively II (foot) as key Mavs who were unavailable against the Clippers.
As much misfortune as the Mavs have had, they had an incredible stroke of luck when they landed Flagg by winning the draft lottery despite only a 1.8% chance.
“It’s pretty cool to be a part of it” Thompson said, referring to the start of Flagg’s career. “We all can be witnesses to what he’s going to do for a long time.”