As the Dallas Mavericks gear up to host the Boston Celtics on Tuesday night, all eyes are on rookie forward Cooper Flagg - and for good reason. The 19-year-old has been turning heads with his recent play, and now he’s set to face a Celtics squad that’s not only one of the league’s elite but also a familiar figure from the Mavericks’ not-so-distant postseason past.
Dallas, sitting at 19-30, is trying to snap a three-game losing streak, and this matchup against a 31-18 Boston team could be just the kind of test that reveals where this young Mavericks core - and Flagg in particular - truly stand. Tip-off is set for 8:00 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock.
Before the game, Flagg reflected on the 2024 NBA Finals - a series that featured the very Celtics team he’s about to face. Despite juggling the demands of his own schedule at the time, Flagg made sure to catch most of the action.
“I watched a good amount of it,” he said. “I was pretty busy but I definitely tuned into most of the games.”
That Finals run, of course, featured a Mavericks team led by Luka Dončić before the franchise-altering trade that sent him to the Lakers last February. Flagg, who was still in high school during that playoff stretch, had high praise for the group that made it to the league’s biggest stage.
“They were incredible,” Flagg said. “They had two guys playing at a really high level.
I mean, the whole team was playing at a really high level, 1 through 8, or whatever it was. They had a lot of really tough guys playing at a high level.”
Fast forward to now, and Flagg is carving out his own place in Mavericks history. Through 45 games in his rookie campaign, he’s averaging 19.8 points, 6.6 rebounds, 4.1 assists, and 1.2 steals per game. He’s shooting 48.4% from the field and 28.9% from deep, logging a heavy 34 minutes a night - a clear sign of just how much Dallas is leaning on him.
And lately, he’s been on a tear.
Cooper Flagg spoke on his observations from watching the 2023-24 Dallas Mavericks team in the NBA Finals facing the Celtics.
— Abby Jones (@_abigaiiiil) February 3, 2026
“They were incredible. They had two guys playing at a really high level. I mean the whole team was playing at a really high level, 1-8, or whatever it… pic.twitter.com/pCMooOvy1Y
Over his last seven games, Flagg is putting up 24.4 points, 7.6 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and a steal per game. He’s shooting 51.5% from the floor and has nudged his three-point accuracy up to 31% in that span. The numbers tell the story of a rookie who’s not just adjusting to the NBA - he’s starting to impose his will on it.
Saturday’s 111-107 loss to the Houston Rockets was another showcase for the young forward, as he dropped 34 points, pulled down 12 boards, and dished out five assists. Just two nights earlier, he exploded for a career-high 49 points in a narrow 123-121 loss to the Hornets - a thrilling rookie duel with his former Duke teammate Kon Knuppel.
These aren’t empty stats. Flagg’s surge has come at a time when Dallas desperately needs a spark. With the team struggling to find consistency and stability in the wake of significant roster changes, his emergence as a go-to option has been one of the few bright spots.
Now, with the Celtics coming to town, Flagg faces a team that knows what it takes to go deep in the playoffs - a team that’s built to test every facet of a young player’s game. For Flagg, it’s not just another night in the NBA; it’s a chance to measure himself against one of the league’s toughest defensive units and a franchise that’s been where Dallas wants to return.
The Mavericks may still be searching for their identity post-Dončić, but in Flagg, they’ve found a player who’s not afraid of the moment - and who might just be ready to help lead them into their next era.