Cooper Flagg is truly the real deal.
The 6-foot-9 forward entered the league as the No. 1 pick in last year’s NBA draft and appears to have turned those expectations into reality. This doesn’t happen often.
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Flagg’s performance and ability to adapt to the NBA has been so encouraging that the Dallas Mavericks can now do something they might not have been comfortable doing post-draft:
Built around Maine locals.
It’s time for Dallas to build around Cooper Flagg. (Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
Stop paying attention to three aging stars
The Mavericks, who have a slew of older stars including Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving and Klay Thompson, have long mistakenly believed that an older team would be closer to a championship than a younger one.
(There’s nothing wrong with the idea of giving veterans more championship proof, but when one is nursing a torn ACL, another is in and out of the lineup due to numerous injuries, and the last is no longer playing like a star at any level, it’s hard to justify such a stance.)
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With Flagg on the scene, there are now no more excuses to keep the aforementioned trio around. In fact, it would be irresponsible to do so because it would just waste everyone’s time.
Of course, getting rid of this trio is easier said than done.
While we’re not sure whether Irving will return like the star he once was, he can at least play an on-ball/off-ball combo to the point where near-championship teams will likely bring up his name in internal meetings as the February 5 trade deadline approaches. But in terms of trade value, the Mavericks can’t justify the high price given Irving’s torn ACL and the fact that he turns 34 in March.
Thompson doesn’t have much trade value as he’s about to turn 36, averages only 11.7 points per game, and struggles defensively. His best days are clearly behind him, and even if his financial compensation ($16.6 million this season, $17.4 million next season) is fairly limited, you could easily assume he’ll be a defensive target in the playoffs without adding enough momentum on offense to justify such an acquisition.
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As for Davis, I wrote about this in detail recently. The TL;DR version is this: being old, expensive, and constantly injured are not attractive elements.
Yet, despite all this, the Mavericks shouldn’t care about returns at all, as long as they don’t accept future money. If, by some miracle, they get Davis on his expiring contract, they should take it and run away to better reset in the summer. If someone offers more, you act cool and don’t call them back to confirm the legitimacy of the offer. (Atlanta, you got away with it there.)
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While Irving isn’t as injured as Davis or as expensive, you have to wonder if he has enough value to demand draft compensation. Of course, this should be Dallas’ initial request, but if the offers coming in are limited to expiring trades, you’ll want to at least evaluate them. Extracting some kind of value for Irving, such as a young player early on in his rookie contract, might also help seal a deal.
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As for Thompson, there’s no rush. But if you can get something for him, including a second-round pick, you might as well grab it.
What should you look for in Dallas?
If the idea is to accumulate cap space for Davis, Irving and Thompson — which it should be — then it gives the Mavericks the ability to design their own supporting cast.
Want to learn to shoot? Sign the best spot-up player they can play against Flagg and make room for him. Want to build a ferocious defensive front? Get a nasty trio of big men who can all attack, defend and switch on the perimeter.
Because no matter how the Mavericks slice it up, their new focus is Flagg, and every primary and secondary roster decision must take him into account.
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They could also make a huge effort to identify Flagg’s primary partner, although that’s unlikely to be found in free agency, which has all but dormant real stars in recent years. The player will most likely need to be acquired via trade. But it also becomes easier when Dallas has a ton of cap space to work with.
Of course, observant people will accurately think, “Where’s the draft pick?” — which is definitely a fair question, since Flagg is only 19 years old and needs players closer to his schedule.
This year’s draft pick, their 2026 first-round pick, will be one of the main building blocks for Dallas. Dallas has complete control of it, with a loaded 2026 class. They have every reason to do as bad as possible this summer to acquire a star who is cost-controllable and fits the timeline mentioned above.
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Since the Mavericks don’t have a lot of control over their future, this year is by far the most important in terms of draft picks as they find another major piece to their upcoming puzzle.
This all goes to show that they have no time to waste. There is no reason to continue using the older core. It would be a mistake if the Mavericks enter the 2026-27 season with one of those members still on the roster.