The finale to one of the worst Mavericks regular seasons in nearly a decade reached an anticlimactic point early in the second quarter.
Cooper Flagg clutched his left leg, hobbled off the court and walked directly to the locker room with Mavericks head trainer Jana Austin.
Just three minutes later, the Mavericks ruled their star rookie out for the remainder of Sunday’s 149-128 win over the Bulls with a left ankle sprain.
The Mavericks conclude the regular season with a 26-56 record, the franchise’s worst mark since it finished 24-58 in 2017-18.
The NBA’s 80th regular season is over. So is Flagg’s historic rookie season.
He finishes with averages of 21 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 1.2 steals and 0.9 blocks in 70 games. The 19-year-old also led his team in total points, rebounds, assists and steals. He finished second behind Daniel Gafford in total blocks.
“He’s done everything we’ve asked him to do, and he’s done it at a high level with a smile,” Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said. “He enjoys the game. He wants to win. He’s a great teammate. He’s a great player to coach … We’re seeing a historic rookie season. It’s fan appreciation night. We have the best fans, but we also have one of the best players in the world present at the age of 19 and the future.”
The Mavericks will now pivot to what’s expected to be a busy offseason, which requires the hiring of a new general manager who will be tasked with building a roster around Flagg and making the right choice with their 2026 lottery pick. Dallas entered the night tied with the Memphis Grizzlies for sixth in the reverse lottery standings. With the win and Memphis’ 31-point loss to Houston, the Mavericks have the seventh-best odds going into next month’s draft lottery.
Sunday’s game was an opportunity for Flagg to make another closing statement in his case for Rookie of the Year, but instead it became a showcase for a couple of the Mavericks’ other first-year players. Without Flagg, the Mavericks were led by two-way guard John Poulakidas, who scored a career-high 28 points on 8 of 16 from the 3-point line. Ryan Nembhard had the best playmaking game of his season with a double-double of 15 points and 23 assists, which marked new franchise records for the most assists by a rookie in a game. The former record of 17 assists belonged to his head coach, Jason Kidd.
Sunday served as Fan Appreciation Night at American Airlines Center. Shortly before tipoff, Flagg addressed the crowd and delivered a message of gratitude.
“On behalf of me and the rest of the guys, we just wanted to say thank you for all the love and support all year long,” Flagg said. “It means a ton to us.”
Moments later, Flagg was escorted to the locker room after landing on the foot of Bulls forward Leonard Miller.
The final image of his sensational campaign is not a highlight dunk, fadeaway jumper or chasedown block as most would expect. It’s another injury, which tells the story of the Mavericks’ season.
The injury will likely be forgotten, but what Flagg achieved as a teenager will be remembered for many years to come.
Mike Curtis / www.dallasnews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
