The Mavericks don’t get to erase the Luka Dončić trade, but they do get to write the next chapter, and it looks a whole lot better than the one that came before it.
Dallas’ reset really began when the Ping-Pong balls bounced its way in the 2025 draft lottery. That win handed the franchise the No. 1 pick and Cooper Flagg, the Duke star who arrived with plenty of hype and then backed it up with a Rookie of the Year season.
Even so, the team around him was a mess. Kyrie Irving missed the year while recovering from a torn ACL, Dallas stumbled to a 26-56 record, and Anthony Davis - the centerpiece of the Dončić deal - lasted just 20 games before being moved to Washington at the trade deadline.
By then, with Nico Harrison gone from the general manager chair, the old shadow had finally started to fade.
That left one big question: what would happen with Irving? Flagg is on one timeline, Irving on another, and there was a real case for Dallas to flip the veteran for future pieces that fit the rookie’s window better.
Instead, the new front office led by Masai Ujiri kept Irving in place. That decision has paid off fast.
On Monday, Flagg and Irving put on a show together, piling up 78 points in a 125-122 win over the Pacers. Flagg was brilliant with 43 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and three steals, going 16-of-25 from the floor and 3-for-6 from deep.
Irving added 35 points of his own, knocking down seven threes on 10 attempts. It was Dallas’ third straight win and pushed the team to a 7-4 start.
The Pacers are still without Tyrese Haliburton and have been stuck in a rough opening stretch, but this was still a statement night for Dallas in front of its home crowd. The closing sequence had the building buzzing. With the Mavericks up two and under a minute left, Naji Marshall grabbed his own miss at the line, the ball found Flagg, and he went right at Andrew Nembhard before burying a midrange jumper that stretched the lead to two possessions with 26.3 seconds left.
Aaron Nesmith answered with a huge three for Indiana, but Irving stayed calm under pressure, drew a foul and stepped to the stripe, where he made both free throws. Nesmith got one last look to tie it, but his shot bounced off the rim and Dallas escaped with a big win on the second night of a back-to-back.
“Just the confidence,” Flagg said postgame when asked how his game has evolved. “Being comfortable getting to my spots.
Learning from someone like Kyrie can teach you a lot. So just watching his execution at the end of games has helped me get comfortable getting to my spots.”
That’s the part Dallas was hoping to see when it chose not to move Irving. The fit is clean in a way that matters: Flagg can attack with space, Irving can bend defenses with his shot-making, and both can create for themselves and others. The result has been wins early, and the possibility that the Mavericks could become a surprise playoff team is no longer just wishful thinking.
The numbers back it up. Flagg is averaging 25.9 points, 6.9 rebounds, 6.9 assists and 3.0 stocks per game.
Irving is at 22.9 points and 4.3 assists while shooting 39.5% from three on more than eight attempts a night. Together, they’re producing 48.8 points and 11.2 assists per game.
Around the league, only a few pairings are matching that kind of output: Dončić and Austin Reaves with the Lakers, Tyrese Maxey and Jaylen Brown with the 76ers, and Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray with the Nuggets.
Dallas has also climbed into the top half of the NBA on both ends, helped by the way Flagg and Irving are tilting the floor. Flagg’s length and athleticism make him a problem everywhere, while Irving has given the Mavericks solid perimeter defense to go with the offense everyone expects.
Flagg has taken another step early in his second NBA season, scoring more, creating more and making a bigger defensive impact. Maybe those in-game peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are doing something after all.
Irving’s influence has been the biggest boost of all. His gravity opens driving lanes for Flagg, and his three-point shooting gives the rookie more room to work.
Dallas didn’t have that kind of spacing last season outside of the brief stretch with Davis and Irving together, and Irving’s style has long had a way of bringing out the best in other stars. Flagg is the latest to benefit.
The roster still has issues. The Mavericks need better shooting overall, Flagg’s long-range game is still coming along, and Max Christie and Zaccharie Risacher could give more.
The wing group is crowded, too. But with Irving back and Flagg thriving beside him, Dallas has found something real.
The duo is already one of the NBA’s best, and it may be enough to carry the Mavericks back to the playoffs after a short but brutal absence.
In Other News...
Cooper Flaggs Breakout Has Mavericks Fans Eyeing A Bigger Test
The Mavericks took control early against the Nets and never really let the game drift, with Cooper Flagg doing the heavy lifting in a performance that gave Dallas plenty to feel good about. Flagg kept the offense organized and aggressive, and the win came with a smoother look than the team has often had when trying to settle into its rotation.
Brooklyn never found much rhythm, especially after Noah Clowney ran into foul trouble and was out of the game in under eight minutes. Dallas also eased Max Christie back in after his injury return, a reminder that the Mavericks are still sorting out their pieces even as the results start to tilt their way. The bigger question now is how Flagg's growing role translates when the opposition is a little less forgiving. [Read more 🡒]
Mavericks Backcourt Problem Just Got Harder To Ignore
The Mavericks backcourt depth is getting tested in a way that makes every absence behind Kyrie Irving feel a little heavier. With backup point guard Sergio De Larrea out because of a right knee sprain, Dallas has had to lean more on its current reserve guards, and Walter Clayton Jr. has helped steady the rotation while the team tries to keep the position from becoming a nightly problem.
De Larrea has already missed six straight games, and the delay in his return only adds to the uncertainty around a group that was already thin. For a team trying to manage its guard minutes carefully, the longer this lingers the more the Mavericks have to rely on patchwork solutions, at least until there is clearer news on when he can get back into the mix. [Read more 🡒]
Mavericks Guard Shakeup Is Creating An Early Rotation Battle
The Mavericks are still sorting out their backcourt mix after Max Christies recent shooting slump and the hip issue that has cut into his availability. In the meantime, Caleb Martin has slid into the starting shooting guard spot and given Dallas a steadier look on the wing, bringing defense and efficient shooting from deep while the coaching staff keeps testing different combinations early in the season.
Walter Clayton Jr. has also entered the conversation as a useful ball-moving option, giving the Mavericks another guard to consider as they evaluate roles and lineups. With Dusty May continuing to experiment, this has become more than a temporary patch job, it is an early rotation battle that could shape how the backcourt settles once the team gets deeper into the schedule. [Read more 🡒]