Reaction to Dallas Mavericks winning Cooper Flagg NBA Draft lottery: IS IT RIGGED!? | Colin Cowherd

Reaction to Dallas Mavericks winning Cooper Flagg NBA Draft lottery: IS IT RIGGED!? | Colin Cowherd

All right. Absolutely bonkers. It I’ve said this before. Take games away. This is one of my favorite nights of the year. I just love it. And first of all, I you know, once they, you know, I didn’t want to see Toronto win it. I’m sorry. I want I want Cooper flag to be here. I didn’t want to see New Orleans, Washington, Charlotte. I, you know, after watching Shooting Guards, uh, that documentary, I can’t root for the Wizards ever again. I was I know it’s a different group. I was so disgusted by it. But but I said earlier today on FS1, I said, “If San Antonio wins, Stefan Castle, WBY, Cooper Flag,” I said, “Oh, poor Oklahoma City. They’ve done everything right. They had Westbrook, Durant, Harden couldn’t win. Now they’re going to have this SGA homegr.” But it’s the Dallas Mavericks. You know, it makes me think of this. Listen, I thought the trade Luca to the Lakers was terrible, but I said before the new CBA, he qualified Luca for 70 large 70 million a year. And I was talking to one of my only friends that ever deals with billionaires. He’s in he’s in, you know, venture capital. And he said, “Listen, man.” He said, “People are so rich now. 30 million’s a rounding air, but even for a billionaire, $75 million for a basketball player, he better play defense. He better be in shape. He better be healthy. He said they’re not paying that to Luca. He goes, and that was his whole theory. He goes, the pressure on Nico, some of it was like, okay, 75 million. He’s he’s missed the last two camps. So whether you liked it or not, I did think it was worthy of discussion. They just didn’t get enough out of it. Three firsts, AD, Austin Reeves, and another pick. It’s like, okay, now we can sleep on it. But here’s what’s funny. Jason Tim essentially instead of 300 million, you get the best domestic prospect maybe since in 10 years since AD resid. I mean, is it not? No. Go ahead. Did Did the basketball gods not grant them the greatest gift ever? You know, I’m not Mr. The NBA is rigged. I’m not that guy. But if you were that guy, this would be the day to make the case because in addition to the Dallas piece, which we’ll get to in just a second, I think that the league has now just teed up San Antonio for the easiest Giannis trade that you could possibly imagine. And we can get into that in a second. But the Dallas The Dallas front is super fascinating because Cooper Flag in many ways is everything that Luca isn’t in the sense that he’s got this like incredible work ethic, proven like detailsoriented freakish competitor, but he what he doesn’t have is like just whatever you want to call that magic quality Luca has, which just brings that top side offensively that very few players in NBA history have reached by his age. And Cooper Flag has a little bit of that sort of uh weakness in the sense that he doesn’t have a singular point of his game that you can point to where it’s like, oh, he is like an A++ athlete or he is a A++ shooter or anything like that, but he’s just so uh versatile down the line that he brings an element that Luca Donuch didn’t bring. He’s such a natural fit next to Anthony Davis, which I really like. There are some big picture questions with Dallas’s roster now with PJ Washington, like how does he fit into this mix? I think on one hand, I’m just so thrilled that Cooper didn’t go to a team that was trying to be bad. I think that that’s one of the nice kind of upsides of this is it it it prevents that sort of mediocrity being rewarded. And then on the Giannis front, uh, with with San Antonio, what I find super fascinating is there are these three teams that are obviously teed up to be able to go get Giannis. And that’s Oklahoma City, San Antonio, and Houston. And Giannis going to Oklahoma City would be no fun. Like that’s no fun. They’re just going to kill everybody. Like that that’s literally no fun. And then Houston, it’s kind of an interesting fit, but Houston is like athletic and can’t shoot. So they seem to make the perfect sense for a KD team. You know what I mean? And so like ideally Giannis going to San Antonio makes the most sense. They have the clear pieces to be able to offer in terms of like they can give Milwaukee both picks and like a really intriguing young prospect like Stfan Castle and a specific pick in this upcoming draft, the number two overall pick where they could hope to get a super highle guard to help in the future. And so with that being the case, like I think this is broken out just about perfectly for what the league would probably like to see. Yeah. I mean, I I I think also I don’t think I’d mess The only thing I thought I thought if San Antonio won the lottery with Stfan Castle Wy and Cooper flag, I thought Oklahoma City would be like, “Okay, right. We’re going to move Homegrren and seven picks and Lou Dort for Giannis.” Like, like, I’m sorry, but this is going to be a freight train for eight years in San Antonio. So, I was saying if you’re Oklahoma City, you were rooting against San Antonio. They may not beat you next year, but that was scary. Um, you know, I wouldn’t have minded Philadelphia winning, but I feel like it would have been almost unfair cuz they’ve really I mean, let’s be honest, they held on to MB too long. They blamed everybody except MB for all their problems. It’s like that’s not fair. But I I also think as a sports cer when I look at this move for Dallas is that I said this to a friend the other day. I said, you know, the best trade partner for Dallas, they need a play initiator. They need Austin Reeves and the Lakers need size and Dallas has a really deep front line. I said, they’re not going to make that move. Now I think to myself, well, you know, I think what Dallas needs is somebody like Cooper Flag, who, let’s just say he’s Jason Tatum. I still think I don’t think Kyrie’s going to play next year. Not until at least the trading deadline. So I it’s Dallas has some extra size to play with. The NBA 82game grind is done. Now the real fun begins. The NBA playoffs. Love them. They’re here. Time for drama. Clutch moments. Steph Curry, LeBron, jaw-dropping plays. I can’t wait. If you’re looking to make the playoffs even more exciting, DraftKings Sportsbook has you covered. They’re the official sports betting partner of the NBA. Playing games all the way to the finals. Now’s the time to back your favorite players and teams as they chase glory. So, all season long, DraftKings been the go-to spot for NBA player props. Uh, that doesn’t stop now. If you want to make your playoff experience even more intense, try placing a bet on your favorite player’s performance. Will they drop 30, 40, who knows? Or more. It’s your call. If you’re ready to place your first bet, download the DraftKings Sportsbook app. Takes 90 seconds. Lock in your bets and let’s make the playoffs unforgettable. Here’s something special for first- timers. DraftKings customers that are new. Bet five bucks. That’s it. Five bucks. And get 200 in bonus bets instantly. Just make it a playoff run to remember with DraftKings. Download their sportsbook app. Takes 90 seconds. The code’s Colin. C O L I N. That is code Colin. New customers get 200 bucks in bonus bets. Betting just five only on DraftKings. The crown is yours. Good god, look at this, Jason. The West is already better. Dallas now gets Cooper flag. San Antonio gets the second best players. The Rutgers kid everybody loves. I mean, I I keep looking at this thing. I I I was talking to Rachel Nichols today. The West is just going to get better. And Yiannis, Milwaukee is not trading him in the East. They’re trading in West. I mean, it it’s that’s that’s what I said about Milwaukee today and the honest trade. Take out Boston. If you go and get a a Chat Homegrren and multiple picks or or go to Houston and get Shenon, Jaylen Green, six picks, and Jabari Smith, I’m throwing names out. Outside of Boston, you’re not that far away from being the number two team in the East. In the West, you could not give up a Giannis. It would be decimating Portland. You know, they move off Dame, they have all this talent. It’s they’re irrelevant. If you had to guess, Giannis, who’s the best fit? And I agree with you, Houston needs a shooter. Giannis probably isn’t the perfect fit. Yeah. The the thing that would be really nice with Giannis as a frontline partner with Victor Webbyama is their games complement each other on a bunch of specific levels. So, for instance, Victor Webbyama is blossoming as this like three-point centric center, and he very clearly likes to take that shot. It’s something he hunts when he’s out there. So, there’s kind of like a spacing dynamic to where you don’t want to have two centers basically playing with each other that both want to work right by the basket. And so, there’s kind of a natural fit there. But the second piece of it is Webby has some vulnerability to size and strength and Giannis does not. And so anchoring anchoring Wemi with a 611 forward that is one of the most physically dominant forwards of his era is kind of a perfect natural fit there. And yeah, they already have with the De’arren Fox piece the ball handling piece. So you can actually see this like this like rim protection center. Giannis has always played better next to a center. or when they when the Bucks used to play him at center, they used to have issues because he’s not as good at defending pick and roll as he is as like kind of a traditional helpside defender. And so Wemby can defend pick and roll. Giannis can be their lowman helpside defender. De’arren Fox is your point of attack guard. It just has such a natural fit there. And one of the things that was going to get tricky with San Antonio, and this is this is where that second pick is super interesting. you get to the question where you’re like, man, are we going to have to give up Stfan Castle and Devin Vel to make this happen. This the number two pick is probably going to be Dylan Harper and he’s very interesting guard out of Ruters that has size and has some athleticism and can and really get to the basket. Dylan Harper gives you another piece to include in a deal like that to maybe keep a Castle or to maybe keep a Devin Vel. Deon Vel is kind of an offball shooter archetype, so he might be the perfect guy to keep. He’s also older and a little bit closer to being ready to contribute in a serious context. And so it kind of just feels like the stars are aligning in that way. If I’m Houston, I want to bargain serious for Giannis, but KD is just such a nice backup plan for them to go to. That just fits so nicely there. And I’m so glad you mentioned the Austin Reeves uh Dallas piece because that deal will never happen after what happened. If the Dallas if if the Mets do another deal with the Lakers, their fans might revolt. But there’s such like an obvious like Gaffford, Austin Reeves, like maybe something like I think the Lakers would need to get more cuz I think Austin’s a better player than Gaffford. But there is like a there’s a version of that deal they could put together where they where they get some athleticism back and it makes some sense and and it’s just a question of whether or not that type of partnership would ever work out. The other the other group that I’d look at if I was the Lakers with Austin is look at Brooklyn and see if they can’t get like a Nick Claxton or something like that and that type of deal. Yeah. Sorry to interrupt this great video, but please remember to like and subscribe. Thank you. Now, back to the video. Yeah, it’s um Oh, I loved it so much the night. It just cracked me up. Dallas, San Antonio, 76ers get the third choice and Charlotte. Um, I will say there’s there’s one thing I do think that really works in the NBA’s favor. When you see a lot of these G-League guys like Jaylen Green, and you kind of put your arms up in the air as an NBA commissioner and go, “Wow, a lot of these guys who are flourishing, these young guys went to college or they’re international, which their academy system is better than our current kind of G-League system.” And it’s not that people will push back on the G-League, but with NIL money at the top 10 programs now comparable, you know, relative to the NIL or to the G-League money, I do think the domestic product, the draft is going to become less international at the top and more domestic or at least it won’t look like last year. I mean, this year is a great example. It’s very domestic product and and so I think that’s I think that really matters. I’ I’ve said this for years. I understood the G-League preNIL, but I’ve said this about Jaylen Green, he has no defined offensive game. Even if you spend a year in college with a with a Dan Hurley or a Bill Self or a Tom Iso, just a year of hard coaching college campus fundamentals maturing, I think it really matters. also playing in March, playing on television, playing in a Big 10 or SEC environment where there’s real pressure. Bad game, the students give you the side eye. Like that’s real pressure for 18, 19 year old. I mean, Cooper Flag, you play at Duke, you have 15 games on Natty TV, and then you have March. So, I do think college basketball’s been a bit marginalized by the league. I got it pre-NIL, but now if I was a dad, I would take a little less and go with a marketing advantage of Kansas, Syracuse, Yukon. Would you? I think you’re dead on with this, Colin. There is there is a thing that happens in the G-League where they prepare you for the pro game in a certain way in the sense that they’ll put you in some NBA roles where you’re either running high ball screens or you’re behaving as the rollman screener or you’re attacking closeouts on the weak side. different NBA defensive concepts. All that’s great, but you’re not going to capture the intensity, the stakes, the overall just like passion and vibe that you get in college basketball. It’s the closest thing that you’re going to find that replicates NBA playoff basketball. I also think the coaching matters. like you’re just going to give your kid the best access to, you know, real uh like intentional detail oriented coaching because at that level, it makes such a huge difference when you’re working with those types of athletes. And like I think to your point, having NIL incentivizing kids to stay in the college game in addition to just being great for just basketball culture because to be honest, NCAA basketball is such a huge part of what I grew up rooting for. When I was a kid, Colin, I I barely watched the NBA. I watched a lot of Arizona, the University of Arizona basketball when I was like 16, 17 when I was going to play high school ball. Those were the kids we idolized. We idolized the kids playing at the UVA. It’s just it’s part of the culture. I think it just needed this. And I’m so glad the NCA was willing to just kind of adapt into this era because we needed this for this sport to survive. I think it’s better for the basketball players in our country. Yeah. Yeah, and I and I’ve said this, I understand the NBA struggling with regular season ratings because regular season, playoff basketball is about veteran teams and recognizable players. So, the numbers go up plus the intensity. Regular season, there’s a lot of guys you don’t know. There’s a lot of bad teams and those are international players you didn’t watch or G-League guys you didn’t watch. And I I’ I’ve said this, you know, Aman Thompson is obviously G-League and a great player, but you watch Jaylen Green and you’re like, man, he could have used college. He he could have really used college. He feels lost. Jonathan Kaminga. I mean, we’re on what year? Year four. I’m still trying to quite figure out what he is. He can’t play with the veterans. I mean, San Anton Golden State’s culture is classic. Every young guy struggles. Every young guy struggles. It could be Wiseman. It can be Kaminga, a Jordan Pool, wore out veteran players. So, I and I love college basketball. And I I was always more NBA than college because I for a lot of reasons. I grew up with Bill Walton and the Blazers and the Sonics when they won championships in the 70s. I’m showing my age, but I will say those those Christian Lightner Duke teams, the Fab Five teams, the five slam jamama, it is impossible to describe to a 20-year-old what college basketball was like 35 years ago. You would literally you could pick up Street and Smith and you could name the first, second, and third team all-Americans off the top of your head because it was you Duncan’s coming back and Euing. I can remember going in Las Vegas. There’s a grocery store chain called Smiths and this is like 20 years ago and I I got this because I always get a street and Smith like before the college basketball season and I looked on the cover they had the all-American team and it was four high schoolers and I was like okay I can’t I’m sorry I can’t do it. So I just thought it I I just God this is fun. How about the Dallas Mavericks?

Colin Cowherd is joined by Jason Timpf to react to the Dallas Mavericks winning the 2025 NBA Lottery and the rights to draft Cooper Flagg after their tumultuous season that included trading Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers. Colin and Jason react to the NBA Lottery results and explain why trading for Giannis Antetokounmpo from the Milwaukee Bucks might just became very realistic for one team.

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