Mavericks risk falling into looming trap after drafting Cooper Flagg

The Dallas Mavericks selected Cooper Flagg yesterday with the first overall pick in the 2025 NBA draft. To say Flagg is a talented player would be the understatement of the century. Flagg won the Wooden Award for best men's college basketball player despite being the youngest player in D1 basketball last season. He's truly a master of all trades, possessing elite scoring, defense, playmaking, and athleticism.

While Flagg is immensely talented, the Mavs must avoid asking Flagg to solve all of their offensive problems. Typically, No. 1 picks are drafted by bad teams and therefore ask their rookie to shoulder a large offensive load. Dallas, however, already has two All-Star caliber players in Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis, and an elite supporting cast. If the Mavs plan to over-rely on Flagg's offense, they risk harming Flagg's development and their hopes at title contention during the Irving-Davis era.

Flagg is unique for a No. 1 pick in that his game allows him to fill a supporting role. Most top prospects require a team built around them and have ball-dominant archetypes. While Flagg will likely develop to be the best player on a team with title hopes, he is not that level of player today. When planning their short-term future, the Mavs should assume Flagg will fill P.J. Washington's role rather than asking the young Duke product to carry the team.

An overreliance on Flagg could doom the Mavs and his development

The 2025 Duke team had a perfect roster construction for Flagg's talent and play style. Duke had Tyrese Proctor, a proven star guard, on the roster and tasked him to initiate the offense. While Flagg had his share of on-ball duties, the option to defer to the more experienced Proctor allowed Flagg to develop as an offensive talent throughout the year.

Flagg has an exciting mix of playmaking and shot-creating talent, which may tempt GM Nico Harrison and the Mavs into banking on Flagg filling Irving's role while he is out with his ACL tear.

This has potentially catastrophic consequences. The transition from college to the NBA is a difficult leap to make for even the best prospects. Particularly, players struggle to read the quicker NBA game and struggle with the increased athleticism seen at the highest level.

Rookies, particularly those with strong playmaking and shot creation, are almost never "winning players" who improve their team's performance. Allowing Flagg to grow into his role as an NBA player would increase the chance that Flagg immediately becomes a winning player in the NBA. This would benefit the Mavs, as it would increase the chances that Flagg is able to help them win a title in 2026, and Flagg, as it would let him learn the game at his own pace.

The way for the Mavs to avoid this trap is to acquire one more capable offensive initiator this offseason. Ideally, this player is equally effective both as a primary option and off-ball. This archetype would alleviate the offensive load on Flagg while also being able to play alongside Irving when he returns from injury.

The player that best fits this mold is Lonzo Ball. Ball has major injury concerns after missing two full seasons, which the Mavs should seriously consider when engaging in trade talks with the Bulls. However, when healthy, Ball is an equally capable point guard and off-ball offensive player. What makes Ball the perfect fit is his defense and size at the guard position, which the Mavs are desperately lacking.

Whether the Mavs acquire Ball or other rumored options like Colin Sexton, Chris Paul, or Coby White, they must add another primary initiator to the squad. If they do not, they risk wasting one of the last star years for Irving and Davis and potentially could harm Flagg's development as an NBA player.