Six days shy of his 19th birthday, Cooper Flagg made a grown-man move.
With his Dallas Mavericks trailing the Utah Jazz by three points in the final minute of the fourth quarter on Monday, Flagg drove into the paint and absorbed the body blow Jazz big man Kyle Filipowski administered. Flagg was fouled and still made a running, left-handed layup for his 38th and 39th points of the game.
Flagg finished with 42 points in the Mavericks’ 140-133 overtime loss in Utah. He was clearly frustrated about his team blowing a nine-point lead in the fourth quarter, but the performance only reinforced that the Newport, Maine, native is one of the best teenagers to ever step on an NBA court. Flagg’s scoring outburst broke a record LeBron James set in 2003 for the most points an 18-year-old had ever produced in an NBA game.
Flagg, who turns 19 on Sunday, chose to skip a year of high school so he could start the clock on his NBA career as soon as possible. He is so young that if he were born 11 days later, he would have been ineligible to play this NBA season at all.
Now, almost two months into his rookie season, Flagg has found a groove. He excels at driving by defenders and finishing at the rim with either hand; he already impacts the game in multiple ways (he added seven rebounds, six assists and two blocks Monday); and he plays an unselfish style of basketball.
While it’s far too early to know if Flagg will achieve all-time-great status, his rookie numbers are comparable to those James put up in his rookie season.
PTSTS%REBASTSTLBLK
Flagg
18.4
55.7
6.3
3.5
1.3
0.7
James
20.9
48.8
5
5.4
1.5
0.7
Flagg has been a slightly more efficient scorer than James was, but he isn’t quite as productive as a passer. Their steals and blocks numbers are similar. So is the fact that the Mavericks and Cleveland Cavaliers tried playing them out of position. According to Basketball Reference, James played 14 percent of his minutes at point guard in his first year. In the Mavericks’ first seven games of the season, coach Jason Kidd tried using a starting lineup that didn’t include a traditional point guard, which essentially thrust Flagg into that role.
Flagg — and Dallas’ offense as a whole — has fared much better since the Mavericks began inserting a traditional point guard in their starting lineups on Nov. 5.
PTSTS%REBASTMavs O RTG
Flagg first 7 games
13.6
50.4
6.3
2.9
103.6
Flagg last 19 games
20.2
57.2
6.3
3.8
111
“I think it’s a lot of pressure and a lot of responsibility that comes with being a point guard,” Flagg said in November. “I don’t know if I was ready for that, or if I was ready to handle that right off the bat. I tried my best. That’s not to say I can’t go back to it and work on it and get better, but I think it’s worked out lately to have somebody else relieve pressure. It doesn’t mean I can’t bring it up and initiate offense.”
There’s been another shift in Flagg’s game that has helped him score more efficiently: He isn’t taking as many jump shots as he did earlier in the season.
At halftime of a Nov. 21 game against the New Orleans Pelicans, Flagg had made 4 of 10 shots, with five of those misses coming outside the paint. During the break, Kidd encouraged Flagg to get into the paint.
Flagg responded with 21 points on 8-of-9 shooting in the second half. Every one of his makes came within 10 feet of the basket.
“When you play to your strengths in this league, you can have a lot of success,” Kidd said in November. “Cooper is getting to the midrange, (attacking) the rim and getting to the free-throw line. When you’re doing that, it can elevate you to being one of the best in the league.
“He’s only 18 years old. He’s learning the game. We’re not telling him not to shoot 3s, because he’s going to be able to do that, too. But what is his biggest strength today? That’s what he’s playing to right now, and that’s being able to get into the paint.”
Flagg is attempting 72 percent of his shots within 14 feet of the basket in his last 11 games, according to Cleaning the Glass. That is up from his first 15 games of the season, when he attempted 61 percent of his shots from that range.
On Monday, Flagg scored 33 of his 42 points either in the paint or at the free-throw line. He knocked down 15 of 20 free throws, which were both career highs. He’s attempting 4.3 free throws per game this season. It’s not hard to envision that number spiking as Flagg’s career progresses. He’s already so good off the dribble that teammate Naji Marshall considers him a “big guard.” Additionally, Flagg embraces contact inside. James averaged 5.8 free throws in his first year. By his third season, he was taking more than 10 per game.
It’s a near certainty that Flagg will put up impressive counting numbers. But maybe the most encouraging thing about Flagg is that he seems more concerned with team success than his individual line in the box score. He was asked Monday about becoming the first 18-year-old to score 40 in an NBA game.
“It’s cool,” he told reporters. “It would have been great to get a win. That’s what I’m more focused on.”
Flagg’s competitive drive is part of what inspires confidence that he’ll maximize his potential. Before the Mavericks played the Milwaukee Bucks on Nov. 10, Bucks coach Doc Rivers offered a prediction about the teenage prodigy’s career.
“Guys with that much athleticism and that much competitiveness and wiling to learn never fail,” Rivers said about Flagg. “Never fail, in the history of our game.”
Flagg is already good, and there is so much room for him to grow.
“You know he’s going to keep getting better,” Rivers said.
