After the Dallas Mavericks won the 2025 NBA Draft Lottery and earned the rights to draft Duke basketball rookie superstar Cooper Flagg, there was some speculation as to whether the franchise could look to trade the pick for a star NBA player.
It was recently reported that Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo was open to playing for a new team for the first time in his career, and the Mavericks landing the top pick in this summer's draft sparked immediate speculation.
With the team's two stars, Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis, both in their 30s, the team is built to win now. Adding a third superstar in Antetokounmpo would make the Mavericks immediate playoff contenders. However, we now know that Dallas will not be trading the first overall pick and will select Flagg.
ESPN's Tim MacMahon reported on the speculation yesterday on SportsCenter.
"What I can tell you is, Patrick Dumont, the governor of the Dallas Mavericks, recognizes the gift horse that was delivered to this franchise, that frankly, after the Luka Dončić trade, had massive business concerns, had significant long-term concerns with him owing the picks from '27 to '30, either outright or via swaps. He recognizes just how much Cooper Flagg would help mitigate those concerns. Again, it's a gift horse. The Mavericks are not going to look in the mouth. The Dallas Mavericks will be picking Cooper Flagg with the number one overall pick."
Whether Flagg wanted his final destination to be in Dallas or not, it's now confirmed that's the franchise he will play for, joining fellow Blue Devils Irving and Dereck Lively II.
Despite the negative attention around the Mavericks' front office over the last few months because of the trade that sent Dončić to Los Angeles out of nowhere, marking potentially the worst trade in the history of the NBA, the Mavericks now have a lot to be excited about heading into next season with the addition of Flagg.
Irving will miss a good chunk of next year's regular season after tearing his ACL in March, but the Mavericks have a very solid young core around him. PJ Washington, Lively, Max Christie, and Daniel Gafford are all extremely productive players when on the court, and when Anthony Davis and Irving are healthy, adding the do-it-all skillset of Flagg could make Dallas a sleeper contender in the West next season.
It looks like Nico Harrison and the rest of the Mavs' front office know the gift they've been given and have no plans to let it go.