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Tim McMahon
Inglewood, California– cooper flag took in a lot of history dallas mavericks‘ Back-to-back games against two Los Angeles NBA teams.
On Friday night, Flagg dished out 11 assists, the most ever by an 18-year-old player, in the loss. lakers,
Twenty-four hours later, Flagg became the youngest player to score 35 points in a game, a feat that was all the more satisfying as it occurred as he led an injury-plagued Dallas team to a 114–110 victory. shears On the Intuit Dome.
“He’s only 18 years old, but he looks like he’s been in this league before,” Mavs coach Jason Kidd said. “He did it all tonight. He had the ball. You can call it point guard or whatever, but he created offense for us. He drove the ball. The ball touched the paint. He got to the rim, got to the free throw line, stepped up and made free throws for us late. Just had his composure on both ends. [was impressive]He competes at a very high level, You saw that tonight, but you saw that last night too,”
Lebron James He is the only other 18-year-old player to score 35 points in an NBA game, having done so twice as a rookie. cleveland cavaliers In December 2023. James’ first 35-point game came when he was 18 years, 348 days old, five days older than Flagg on Saturday night.
The highlight of Flagg’s career-high scoring outing was a spectacular drive and two-handed dunk at the Clippers Center ivica zubacAn All-Defensive selection last season. Flagg attacked the basket consistently throughout the game, going 13-22 from the floor with eight buckets within three feet of the basket.
“It’s obviously right for me to be aggressive right now, and that’s what coach has stressed to me,” said Flagg, who also had eight rebounds and two assists in 38 minutes. “I have to be aggressive, and we’re going to have some mistakes, but you just have to be aggressive and trust everything I do. My teammates are extremely confident in me, and I feel that way. And when they trust me, it enables me to be free out there.”
Flagg, who had struggled on the second night of their previous back-to-back, started the game strongly, scoring 12 points in the first quarter and 21 points in the first half. He kept his composure after some costly turnovers in the fourth quarter and scored eight points in the final two minutes, 47 seconds.
“Cooper’s upside is limitless,” Mavs shooting guard clay thompson Said. “He has every tool to be great. Sometimes I can’t believe he has to be new to college.”
It was Flagg’s oldest teammate, the 35-year-old Thompson, who made sure the rookie No. 1 overall pick got a chance to eliminate the Clippers. Thompson scored 17 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter, the kind of streak he was famous for while starring on four championship teams. Golden State Warriors,
Thompson, who was briefly listed out due to right knee soreness on the official injury report before changing his mind after swimming in the ocean on Saturday, was 6 of 8 from the floor and 4 of 6 from 3-point range in the fourth quarter. His 28-footer with 1:52 remaining gave the Mavs the lead for good.
“It felt like a relief,” Thompson said. “I haven’t shot the ball well these first 20 games, at least not at my level. So when you have a night like this after the tough start we’ve had, it gives you a reprieve going forward. It really motivates me to stay out there as much as I can.”
It’s been a tough start for Thompson and the 6-15 Mavs, who got more bad news just minutes before tipoff on moving up pj washington Landed on a basketball and sprained his right ankle. Washington joins kyrie irving (knee surgery), anthony davis (calf injury management), Daniel Gafford (Ankle Injury Management) and Derek Lively II (foot) as the Mavs’ key forward who was unavailable against the Clippers.
As much bad luck as the Mavs endured, they also received an incredible stroke of luck when they won the draft lottery despite only having a 1.8% chance of landing the flag.
“It’s great to be a part of,” Thompson said, referring to the beginning of Flagg’s career. “We can all bear witness for a long time to what he is going to do.”
