The Mavericks are an ‘ideal situation’ for Cooper Flagg – Jonathan Givony | NBA on ESPN

The Mavericks are an ‘ideal situation’ for Cooper Flagg – Jonathan Givony | NBA on ESPN

the Dallas Mavericks improbably will be on the clock shams tomorrow with the number one pick here they they’ve had a turbulent season to put it kindly trading away their face of the franchise and Luca Donuch and now they’re going to land Cooper flag but the state of this team is not necessarily what you expect usually for a number one pick destination yeah the one decision that’s obvious for the for the Dallas Mavericks is drafting Cooper Flag around that there’s a ton of decisions that they have to make last uh yesterday they did reach an agreement on a three-year nearly $60 million extension with Daniel Gaffford but the bigger contract decision right now that’s looming for the Mavericks is Kyrie Irving he’s got a $43 million player option the deadline is at midnight tonight and the sides have been discussing two three-year contract frameworks but right now Kyrie Irving is looking at three different options you’re either going to opt into that player option you’re going to either decline it and likely reach an extension with Dallas or you push that date back and allow the Dallas Miners to figure out is there a way to get Kyrie Irving more money because listen if he’s opting in that means one thing that means that the sides could not find any type of common ground on a long-term deal of course that’s not what Dallas wants it feels like this is a group that if they can stay afloat until January flag starts to gel a little bit here and then you’re talking about maybe getting Kyrie Irving back from that ACL injury this is a team that really could make a push yeah and when you talk about Cooper Flag the one thing I sat down with him in March and I asked him what was it like to be the leader at Duke and the first thing he said was how special it was to have veterans around him at Duke that could help ease him into college basketball he will have that same thing when he goes to the Dallas Mavericks when you talk about a player like Kyrie Irving Anthony Davis so Cooper Flag can come in you just said it’s not a normal situation most times number one overall picks they go to a team and everything’s on their shoulders this won’t be that for Cooper Flag so you imagine Kyrie Irving coming back you’ve got Anthony Davis this could be a beautiful situation for Dallas to make a run well Anthony Davis he did tell me you know I remember when Cooper Flag splashed that uh three in my face during Team USA training camp he said I might need to get him back for that i want to bring in our front office insider Bobby Marks into this conversation as well bobby when you’re looking at Dallas here this is such a unique situation for a number one pick to land what do you think is most important on the eve of the 2025 NBA draft well Sham said the Kyrie Irving decision is going to be important here because as is this roster is ready to win right now when you look at Kyrie Klay Thompson Cooper Flag Anthony Davis Derek Lively or Daniel Gaffford but here’s here’s the big if when does Kyrie Irving return to this roster and there is a gapping hole at point guard that’s why if he could decline that option sign out a little bit of less that gives them the flexibility to go out and get a temporary replacement for the next four months this decision by Kyrie Irving is going to be critical for how Dallas proceeds in this offseason again the deadline for Kyrie Irving tonight at midnight $43 million he is weighing here this is a franchise that really has been marked by the stars that they have had through the decades here the city of Dallas it was awarded an NBA expansion franchise in 1980 the Mavs made five straight playoff appearances in the middle of their first decade but things took a little bit of a turn for the franchise in the9s dallas didn’t win a single playoff game in that span those tumble weeds yeah they are symbolic but everything changed when a kid from Germany made his way on the roster ushering in a new era of basketball dirk Nitzky’s career it culminated of course in the 2011 championship the first and only NBA championship for the franchise another European player entered the scene slovenian Luca Dantage who looked Yeah exactly like that he continued the success that Durk had laid down he led the Mavs to a finals appearance just over a year ago however in February the trade that shocked the world dallas general manager Nico Harrison became the target of some of the Mavs fans disgust davis fellow star Kyrie Irving they were out for the season with injury shortly after that but then last month fans they finally had something to cheer about the Mavericks won the pick for just the second time in franchise history the first time in the modern lottery era and now all eyes are on Cooper Flag here it’s the night before your life is going to change have you spent much time sitting in that feeling um I think a little bit um you know I was able to go home for a little bit pretty recently and that kind of helped to let everything sink in i was just seeing all my old family and friends so that kind of helped me to kind of sit with it and realize that you know everything is really happening right now and it’s going to be great i’m I’m a big fan of your mom you come from a family of hoopers your mom is an apoint scorer in high school love this quote that she has she says that your family lives by this quote about being in the gym Evan what’s that quote that she always says yeah so it’s um kind of like you said if you’re the base person you got to find a new gym um so that sort of thing of just you know always you know trying to find you know a place to get better and push yourself and be around people who are going to push you to the highest level i ask players who is the person that they’re most looking forward to facing who is the the one individual player that they think that this is going to feel like yeah I’ve made it to the NBA i’m not sure you have that do you i mean I think I had that kind of like playing with the with that USA team i think that was kind of my you know like moment of like wow i walked up into the gym and I was shell shocked that was one of the first times I’ve been in a gym and and felt really shell shocked who was it that that shocked you i mean who wasn’t it it was the entire roster i mean it was Hall of Fame guy after Hall of Fame guy um in the future so it’s it was just crazy i mean LeBron Courier i remember the first possession I actually checked into the game I was guarding LeBron so that was kind of um a shell shock moment as well what do you think of the nickname the main event i think it’s cool i I like that nickname um I don’t know if I could see like somebody calling me that to my face though like it’s a little bit like somebody’s like “Oh what’s up main event?” Like I don’t know it’s like that but I think like in general it’s it’s kind of a cool nickname i think it’s a pretty cool nickname i love how much you rep where you’re from but in all seriousness you and your brother are incredibly close he’s going to be here tomorrow along with your other sibling as well as your parents what will it mean to share that moment with them in particular it’s going to be incredible um these are their this is the moment you know some of the moments I’ve dreamed about my entire life so you know to be able to go through it with them and to have them along for this experience it’s truly surreal and I don’t even know how to put it into words so I’m just really excited really important news Jay i asked him whether or not he’s keeping the goatee for tomorrow because it’s the game time decision are you keeping it i don’t have a choice it’s the only hair on my head he will join an illustrious list of Duke players drafted number one overall here but what does he bring do you think Jay to Dallas he brings he’s a complete player that brings versatility at both ends of the floor he’s not only versatile on offense where he can shoot it he can handle it he can pass it he’s a excellent in transition he drives it but defensively with his length and athleticism he can really guard multiple positions and be he’s a defensive playmaker but in transition uh he’s a big- time player he showed his his finishing ability but being able to make blocks and he makes the right play in a given situation he’s not going into a game thinking I’m going to be the top scorer i’m going to get 25 he does what it takes to make the right play right now and then he does it again the next play and the next play and just stacks the right play over and over again at the end of the game he’s put up numbers to the point where he led Duke in scoring rebounding assists steals and blocks i mean it’s ridiculous especially for a Final Four team and he did it as a 17 into his 18 year 18th year youngest player phenomenal i mean just it’s hard to and it’s even hard to sort of articulate how competitive he is at that age like that that’s sort of the thing that sets him apart is that that he’s ultra competitive and there are a lot of great competitors out there but I would put him on the top tier of competitors I’ve seen over the last 20ome years you know it’s interesting Jay because you talk about how competitive he is but it doesn’t make him hard to be around like he’s competitive but there’s still so much joy i was talking to Rachel Baker the GM at Duke and she said it’s impossible to be in a bad mood around Cooper right that’s just the person that he is he’s so fun to be around but he’s also fun to play with because of the way he finds his teammates and I know Dallas fans were so brokenhearted when they lost Luca they are getting a player very different from Luca but one thing that they have in common is their ability to find their teammates especially off the lob look at this handoff roll to the basket the way that Cooper Flag found Kaman Malawatch i’m immediately thinking about Cooper Flag finding Daniel Gaffford who just signed that extension finding Derek Lively finding Anthony Davis the ability to get into a lob pass off of the dribble off of a screen a short roll they loved running that cooper flag sets a screen handler hits him in the short immediate lob to Malawatch we’re going to see that in Dallas this is music to Dallas fans ears because they love a rim running big and to be able to see someone be able to find those bigs that play above the rim that is what Dallas Mavericks fans love but we’re not comparing him to Luka Dodic it’s not quite that way i I do love getting a good NBA comp though goon uh let’s bring in our our our draft expert here Jonathan Gavone who do you look at as maybe a comp for Cooper malikica I look at a couple of players kawhi Leonard Scotty Pippen Aaron Gordon Jason Tatum all these guys have the size the length the athleticism the frame to slide all over the floor guarding point guards through centers this is what the NBA is built around these days you saw the Oklahoma City Thunder with the defensive versatility the intensity they brought jaylen Williams in the playoffs sliding bringing the ball up the court but also putting the body on centers cooper Flag will be able to do the same thing as his body fills out long term now like Kawhi Leonard his game was built around defense before it was built around offense but similar to Kawhai he’s made significant strides with his ball handling ability his ability to play pick and roll his shooting his passing for Kawhi Leonard that happened at age 22 23 for Cooper Flag that happened at age 18 cooper Flag likes to compare himself to Jason Tatum i can see that a little bit but I just think that the Dallas Maver going to need him to be a primary ball handler really like a guy that plays a significant role as a shot creator for them he’s going to step into a huge role this is an ideal situation for Cooper Flag i mean but look this is how I look at Cooper Flag if LeBron James and Kevin Garnett had a baby you get Cooper Flag and why I say that is because when you think about when you think about LeBron James when you think about LeBron James you think of a complete basketball player right Jay you just ran off the stats he led the team and everything that’s a LeBron James type thing and you talked about his passion his tenacity i’m watching KG all over again the way that he plays with a high level we don’t give players enough credit like Cooper Flag i think it’s a skill to have a high motor like he has it and you talk about his competitive nature and saying this is one of the most competitive guys over the last 20 years it is because most guys in high school nowadays they reclass and go the other way he reclassed up so he’s running up the chimney looking for the smoke and I love everything about this young man i love how humble he is i love how lowmaintenance he is and how hard working he is and he’s a generational talent you know you I mean you hear the quote right when his family says if you’re the best player in the gym it’s time to go find a bigger gym well now he’s in the ultimate gym here in the NBA on the eve of hearing his name called for the very first time [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause]

On the 2025 NBA Draft Preview Special, Kendrick Perkins, Andraya Carter, Jay Bilas, Shams Charania and Jonathan Givony discuss the potential of Cooper Flagg going No. 1 overall to the Dallas Mavericks.

☑️ Subscribe to ESPN+: https://plus.espn.com/
📱 Get the ESPN App: http://www.espn.com/espn/apps/espn
🏀 Subscribe to NBA on ESPN on YouTube: http://bit.ly/2yxs3Og
☑️ Subscribe to ESPN on YouTube: http://es.pn/SUBSCRIBEtoYOUTUBE
☑️ Watch ESPN on YouTube TV: http://es.pn/YouTubeTV

#ESPN #NBA