Mavericks somehow already have a glaring Cooper Flagg problem to address

The unthinkable happened on Monday night when the Dallas Mavericks won the NBA Draft Lottery and the right to select Cooper Flagg in the 2025 NBA Draft next month. This was a twist that no one expected, as the Mavs only had a 1.8 percent chance of landing the No. 1 pick, but they beat all odds, and the ping pong balls fell their way.

Mavericks fans rejoiced, as this seemed like the one and only way to win them back after the heartbreaking Luka Doncic trade from the offseason, and excitement is already back in the air in Big D. The energy surrounding Mavs basketball has returned over five months before the 2025-26 season begins, and fans can't wait to see what Flagg can do at the NBA level.

Flagg's addition to the current Mavericks roster gives them an incredible trio of Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving alongside Flagg, with role players all over the place to complement them, but the fit isn't picture-perfect just yet. With the Mavericks being locked in on selecting Flagg, some things are going to have to change before opening night to optimize the roster and put Flagg in the perfect position to succeed.

Mavericks' frontcourt will be too crowded with Cooper Flagg

The Mavericks have a surplus of frontcourt players as things currently stand, and Nico Harrison has some roster decisions to make over the next few months when it comes to how he wants to build his squad around Flagg and company.

With Flagg now in the mix for good, the Mavericks have a major decision to make when it comes to Dereck Lively II, Daniel Gafford, and P.J. Washington's futures with the team. With Davis preferring to play the four rather than the five, and Flagg's true position being the four, it may make most sense to deal one of their bigs, such as Lively II or Gafford, to get them some guard help.

Irving is going to be out for a large chunk of next season due to his torn ACL, and Brandon Williams, Naji Marshall, and Jaden Hardy aren't going to be enough to hold them over until he returns. Also, with Davis likely going to close some games at the five, it doesn't make sense to keep both Lively II and Gafford on the roster with Flagg now in the mix. Having two of the Mavs' best players on the bench in Lively II and Gafford at the end of games would be a nightmare and awful asset management, and while the Mavericks could make it work and keep them both, their center room is already their strongest area, and they have other areas of need.

An incredible end-of-game closing lineup for the Mavs would include Irving, Klay Thompson, Flagg, Washington, and Davis, and they'd have one of the bigs (or two if they don't trade Lively II or Gafford) on the bench to come in if needed depending on who is on the floor for the opposing team. A back line of Washington, Flagg, and Davis would be incredibly hard to score on, and lineups with Davis at the five will likely end up being their most effective lineups.

Another avenue the Mavericks could explore is trading Washington to get them a guard, but that seems like the far worse plan when comparing it to trading one of the bigs. 3-and-D wings are too valuable in today's NBA to punt on Washington, and both he and Flagg could play the three.

With Harrison and the Mavericks set on drafting Flagg, some moves around the edges to fill out their roster are definitely going to happen, and Dallas is looking to be a contender heading into next season. They have the best problem in sports on their hands when it comes to their frontcourt (being too deep, which isn't actually a problem), and time will tell if Harrison doubles down on his big-big lineups or if he gets the team some much-needed guard help.