Mavericks fans must hear analyst's shocking take on Cooper Flagg's immediate impact

The Dallas Mavericks have a lot to be excited about when it comes to Cooper Flagg, as the 18-year-old has flashed tantalizing two-way potential throughout his high school and college career, and impressed heavily through two games at Summer League with Dallas before being shut down. Mavericks fans know Flagg isn't coming into a situation where he'll be asked to be the No. 1 option right off the bat, but on the flip side of that, Dallas will be asking Flagg to buy in to a winning brand of basketball immediately.

Flagg's insane work ethic and competitive spirit have been well documented by Mavericks fans and analysts since he was drafted, and this will be a mentality that helps him star in his role, as the Mavericks will need him to wear many hats next season, given how versatile a player he is. One thing Flagg may be asked to do more prominently compared to his time at Duke will be handling the ball and shooting 3-pointers, as the Mavericks still want to develop the aspects of his game that will make him great, while still trying to win games at the same time.

In terms of what Flagg will bring to the Mavericks that will help them win games from the jump, acclaimed NBA analyst and former Maverick Tim Legler recently outlined a variety of ways in which he thinks Flagg will impact winning immediately, as Legler sees the Mavericks finishing with a better record than most in the national media think right now as well.

Tim Legler thinks Cooper Flagg will make a day-one impact defensively

"I think this an above .500 team, regardless of how long it takes to get Kyrie [Irving] back...I think Cooper Flagg does have an immediate impact on their team defensively," Legler said on a recent episode of "The ALL NBA Podcast". "I think he's going to get comfortable offensively quickly, might not be the deep shooting early, that might take a little time. But the guy's athletic enough, he good off the ball, and he's a good enough playmaker that even if he's not scoring, he's going to affect your team, and I think he's a difference maker defensively right away."

Legler is one of the best in the business in terms of analyzing what's actually happening on and off the court, and predicting how much of a long-term impact that will have on regular season and playoff success, so for him to say that Flagg will be a "difference maker" on defense from the jump, is something that should have Mavericks fans extremely excited.

While there's some positional overlap in the starting five if Dallas elects to start Flagg alongside Anthony Davis and P.J. Washington, all three of them are quick-footed enough in the front-court to switch a lot defensively, so Flagg should still have more than enough opportunities to showcase some of his most show-stopping defensive attributes like his weak-side rim protection and his ability to hedge and recover defensively.

Legler's analysis of what Flagg will bring to the table on defense for the Mavericks next season is spot on here, and he gives Mavericks fans more to get excited about when he talked about Flagg's developing offensive game as well, as Legler clearly thinks Flagg is a fluid enough athlete and enough of a competitor to start picking up the NBA offensive game quicker rather than not.

There's a lot to be excited about as a Mavericks fan heading into next season, and Flagg's impact as a rookie is certainly at the forefront of that list. The Luka Doncic trade will be a looming grey cloud over Dallas for the foreseeable future, but the Mavericks have been blessed with an opportunity to reset the deck while still trying to compete for a championship next season, which is the best outcome they could've hoped for after Irving tore his ACL following the Doncic trade.