Cooper Flagg has the perfect chance to erase Mavericks fans' Luka Doncic heartbreak

Since the Dallas Mavericks won the 2025 NBA Draft Lottery back in May, the hype around the city returned after the heartbreaking Luka Doncic trade that sent him to Los Angeles less than a year after he led the Mavs to the NBA Finals. The Mavericks selected Duke sensation Cooper Flagg with the first overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, pleasing every Mavericks fan by not trading the pick, and he already looks like the real deal.

So far in preseason, Flagg has lived up to the hype of being the No. 1 overall pick, and there's a perfect way for Flagg to begin his NBA career to put an end to the sorrow from the Doncic trade. Mavericks fans will always love Doncic, but he can begin to follow in his footsteps this year and show the city of Dallas that they're in good hands now.

Rookie of the Year would be the perfect first step for Cooper Flagg

Expectations are through the roof for Flagg in the 2025-26 NBA season after the one season he played at Duke. For Flagg to quickly turn into a superstar-caliber player and begin to help Mavs fans move on more from the team trading Doncic, he must win the Rookie of the Year award as Doncic did in his first season in Dallas back in 2019.

Surprisingly, Flagg has a better ability to stand out more than Doncic did when he won the award, as all eyes are on him, considering that he is one of the most hyped prospects that this league has seen in some time. While Doncic was hyped up, being the third overall pick, the spotlight from fans and the media wasn't fully on him due to it being Dirk Nowitzki's final season in Dallas. For Flagg, he has a better roster around him put together by general manager Nico Harrison than Doncic did as a rookie, as the Mavericks could be a contender in the Western Conference this season with Flagg at the helm. On the other hand, they only won 33 games in Doncic's rookie season.

Even though he is hurt to start the season, Kyrie Irving will be back at some point with plenty of eyes on him as well. Anthony Davis, Klay Thompson, Dereck Lively II, and Daniel Gafford are also talented players who will help Dallas win games, but Flagg has already emerged as a fan-favorite, and he will be a top player on the roster immediately.

Flagg can begin his Mavericks career better than Doncic did in his first season by putting up better rookie numbers than Doncic did, and although this will be a tall task, this could be the proof that fans need to believe that Flagg has the potential to be a franchise cornerstone for years to come.

Doncic won the 2019 Rookie of the Year, averaging 21.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, and six assists per game. While Flagg isn't known for being an offensive engine yet, he has shown great promise with his passing, and his size and athleticism are capable of helping him average better rookie numbers than Doncic did, scoring and rebounding the ball.

Flagg will also become one of the Mavs' best defenders right away, and this was never the case for Doncic when he was on the roster. Defense was a major area of Doncic's game that was criticized while he was in Dallas, and Flagg's two-way ability is something that Mavericks fans will love on day one.

Dallas' season opener on October 22 against the San Antonio Spurs at American Airlines Center can't arrive any quicker for the Mavericks fans to cheer on Flagg in his NBA debut. With all the hype around Flagg, delivering big in his debut will be a perfect step in the right direction for him to win the Rookie of the Year in 2026, just as Doncic did in 2019.