Cooper Flagg is on the board.
The Dallas Mavericks rookie forward scored his first professional points Thursday night in a Summer League matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers.
After a couple missed shots out of the gate, the pride of Newport, Maine, firmly announced his arrival to the NBA with a fast break dunk partway through the first quarter at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.
The 6-foot-9 rookie scooped up a loose ball on the defensive end and quickly showed his ability to go end-to-end with the ball in his hands. Flagg outran two Los Angeles defenders and took off for an emphatic right-handed slam.
Flagg quickly followed up those first two points with a fadeaway mid-range jumper. He ended up on the floor, and the ball ended up in the basket. He then piled on an and-1 bucket after those first four points.
Thursday night’s Summer League game between the Mavericks and Lakers saw a surge in interest — and ticket prices — as top 2025 draft pick Flagg and closely watched NBA sophomore Bronny James — LeBron James’ son — headlined the highly anticipated matchup.
Bronny James opened the scoring for the Lakers with a quick five points.
NBA Summer League typically features rookies, second year players and members of the NBA developmental G League. This year’s Summer League in Las Vegas will stretch through July 20 and feature at least four games for the Mavericks.
Dallas is scheduled to play the San Antonio Spurs next at 4 p.m. July 12.
