Cooper Flagg just reminded the Mavericks of Luka Doncic — but not in a good way

Down 23 points to the Toronto Raptors with nearly 10 minutes remaining, Cooper Flagg attacked left and went up for a layup. He missed the attempt after some contact and immediately turned toward the baseline referee. As he jogged back down the floor, Flagg continued jawing at the official, which resulted in the first technical foul of his career.

Following the technical, Flagg’s slow jog back allowed a Raptors 3-pointer, and the technical foul added another point for Toronto. Just like that, it was a four-point swing and a 27-point Raptors lead in seconds. Despite Flagg posting 15 points, eight rebounds, and five assists to that point, the sequence was still a costly one — sure to stir up some unpleasant memories for Mavericks fans.

A familiar frustration for Mavericks fans

Before Flagg arrived, Dallas’ generational talent was Luka Doncic, who became known for his constant arguing with officials. Something that often turned into a major distraction. Doncic received five technical fouls in his first season with the Dallas Mavericks, but by his third year, he ranked second in the NBA with 15.

Despite Luka Doncic's brilliance, his constant arguing with officials often became painful to watch. It was by no means a reason to move on from him (how could a team part with a perennial All-NBA First Team talent over something like that?) But the habit was still detrimental at times, leading to easy baskets in transition when Doncic lingered behind to argue, or leaving the Mavericks’ leader visibly frustrated during critical stretches of games.

Cooper Flagg isn’t getting the whistle

Flagg, who just picked up the first technical foul of his career, is nowhere near as argumentative as Doncic, and likely never will be. Still, this moment didn’t come out of nowhere. As an athletic wing averaging 12.3 drives per game and 7.0 field-goal attempts on those drives, Flagg’s free-throw rate is comically low.

The former Blue Devil averages just 1.8 free throws per game on drives. And while his free-throw rate isn’t lower than several players who drive even more often, his pass percentage ranks 25th among the 28 players averaging at least 12.0 drives per game. In other words, when Flagg attacks the rim, he’s usually looking to score. Yet among players attempting at least 7.0 shots per game on drives, the 19-year-old ranks dead last in free-throw rate.

Three-fourths of the way through his first professional season, there’s a clear reason for Flagg’s growing frustration with officials. Despite being an athletic, downhill attacking force, he simply isn’t getting many foul calls.

Still, any argumentative streak will inevitably remind Mavericks fans of Doncic, and not in a good way. It’s early, and this could easily be an overreaction to a single technical foul. But it’s something worth monitoring, particularly if Flagg continues to attack the rack at one of the highest rates in the league without getting the foul calls to match.