Dallas Basketball

Mavericks' Cooper Flagg made NBA history in back-to-back games vs Lakers, Clippers

Cooper Flagg is starting to settle into the NBA, and has thrived in his two games in Los Angeles.
Nov 29, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA;  Dallas Mavericks guard Max Christie (00) and forward Cooper Flagg (32) chat during the fourth quarter against the Los Angeles Clippers at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images
Nov 29, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Max Christie (00) and forward Cooper Flagg (32) chat during the fourth quarter against the Los Angeles Clippers at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

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Dallas Mavericks star rookie Cooper Flagg is finally starting to come into his own. After starting the season in a point guard role, one that did not come naturally to him, Flagg has now transitioned back to his spot on the wing, and he's been thriving. Over his last 13 games, he's averaging 18.4 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 3.8 APG, and 1.6 SPG.

Flagg is coming off two great games in Los Angeles this weekend: 13 points and 11 assists against the Lakers on Friday night, then 35 points and 8 rebounds against the Clippers on Saturday. It was easily his best performance of the season, as his 35 points were a season-high for any rookie this year.

But Flagg made NBA history with both of those performances. Flagg was the youngest player in NBA history to have 10+ assists in a game with his 11 assists against the Lakers, and then he became the youngest player in history to have 35+ points in a game because of Saturday's incredible performance.

Saturday's performance was incredible because he was able to beat the Clippers, despite James Harden and Kawhi Leonard each having big games, while the Mavs were missing Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, Dereck Lively II, Daniel Gafford, and P.J. Washington. That's a great performance from an 18-year-old.

READ MORE: 3 overreactions as Cooper Flagg leads Mavericks to overdue clutch win over Clippers

Cooper Flagg Silences Haters With Latest Performance

There was a lot of chatter in the last few weeks about how good Flagg really was as a prospect, as Yahoo's Kevin O'Connor said he had been told by an NBA executive that Flagg would go as low as 6th in the upcoming 2026 NBA Draft, which is just an absurd statement.

While the 2026 NBA Draft is incredibly talented, including prospects such as AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, Cam Boozer, and plenty of others, Flagg reclassified to last year's class, won National Player of the Year as a freshman (one of four players to ever do so), and is producing like this as an 18-year-old. Every time he does something, it's usually the youngest player ever, or the youngest to do so since LeBron James. Either way, that's rare air.

The Mavericks should still focus on securing a high pick so they can pair Flagg with another elite prospect for the future. They want to build around Flagg and Kyrie Irving while they explore trades for Anthony Davis, but Flagg will need a running mate five years from now. As much as we'd like it to be Dereck Lively II, the injuries are already starting to mount for him.

READ MORE: Mavericks starter goes down minutes before tip against Clippers in strange fashion

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Austin Veazey
AUSTIN VEAZEY

Austin Veazey joined NoleGameday as the Lead Basketball Writer in 2019, while contributing as a football writer, and started as editor for MavericksGameday in 2024. Veazey was a Florida State Men’s Basketball Manager from 2016-2019. Follow Austin on Twitter at @EasyVeazeyNG

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