Former Maverick reveals why Flagg is the weapon Nico Harrison's master plan needed

On the night of May 12, 2025, Dallas Mavericks basketball changed forever.

This is the night that Dallas landed the No. 1 pick and the right to select Cooper Flagg, and while there has still been sorrow from fans who still (and always will) miss Luka Doncic, excitement is back in the air in DFW. The Mavs were gifted the perfect prospect to fulfill Nico Harrison's vision, and it couldn't be more obvious why.

Flagg is one of the best defensive prospects this league has seen in some time, and former Mavs guard and current NBA analyst Tim Legler seems to fully agree. As a guest on the DLLS Mavs Podcast, Legler dove into Flagg's defense, and his analysis reveals exactly why Harrison is going to love him in Dallas.

Tim Legler believes Cooper Flagg will dominate defensively on day one

Legler dives into how Flagg should be able to guard two through five right off the bat, and he couldn't be higher on his potential. He seems to think that he and Anthony Davis are going to form a monstrous duo down low due to their help defense, and Mavs fans should be ecstatic that one of the best basketball minds in the game and a former Maverick is this high on Flagg's fit in Dallas.

"Starting like year two, I think he can be in that same category as Amen Thompson in terms of a guy that's potentially an all-league defender," Legler said. "Like pretty quickly, he'll get there."

Flagg being mentioned in the same sentence as one of the best perimeter defenders in the league in Amen Thompson before he steps onto an NBA floor is a major honor, and while Legler wants to see how he performs before predicting a Defensive Player of the Year in his future, he is still a big beliver in what Flagg can do.

"He's got about as much 'want to' for a wing, that's a high-profile wing, as anybody I've seen coming into the league as far as (a) 'want-to' defender," Legler stated. "He loves it. That's the first thing that stood out to me when I started hearing about him..."

While Flagg holds all of the tools to be an elite NBA defender, such as elite length, anticipation, athleticism, size, and more, his drive is what truly makes him special. Effort is half of the battle defensively, and as Legler stated, Flagg wants to be a stud on that end as bad as he wants to breathe.

It's extremely rare to see a highly-touted prospect like Flagg care this much about defense, and this is exactly why he will be on Harrison's good side before he arrives in Dallas following the draft.

Harrison is all about defense, and the Doncic-Davis trade is a testament to that.

He doubted Doncic's fit as a franchise cornerstone due to his defensive struggles on top of a plethora of different reasons, and from what it seems like, Flagg will never struggle on that end and will be a dream fit next to Davis.

He should become one of the best help-side defenders in the NBA right when he steps onto the hardwood for opening night, and all eyes will be on him. Flagg literally seems like he was made in a lab to fulfill Harrison's "defense wins championships" motto, and they should have one of the best defenses in the NBA on day one with players like Flagg, Davis, and Dereck Lively II fearlessly holding down the paint.