Kyrie Irving and Cooper Flagg still haven’t played a game together for the Mavericks, but Dallas already has a glimpse of what that pairing can look like.
Flagg said in an interview that he and Irving have been in the gym together this offseason, a sign that the two are building chemistry well before they ever share the floor in an actual game.
“Being able to get in the gym with Kyrie this offseason, he’s back healthy,” Flagg said in an interview. “Kyrie is obviously one of the greats, so just to be able to share the floor with him and learn from him on the fly and be able to go out there and compete, it’s going to be a lot of fun.”
He also added, "I'm excited to get back to playing games and improve a lot."
The Mavericks’ young star also talked about the areas he’s been sharpening this summer, saying he has been working on his shot creation, ball handling, and shooting. Those are exactly the kinds of skills Irving has long made look effortless, which makes the offseason pairing feel like a natural fit for Dallas.
There hadn’t been public footage of Irving and Flagg working together this summer, so Flagg’s confirmation matters. It shows the 34-year-old guard and the 19-year-old forward are already starting to connect before training camp even opens.
For Dallas, that’s the encouraging part. Irving’s recovery from his ACL tear has been trending in the right direction, and if he looks anywhere close to the player he was before the injury and before Luka Doncic was traded, the Mavericks could have a dangerous one-two punch on their hands.
That doesn’t automatically make Dallas a title team, and it doesn’t mean Irving and Flagg are the league’s top duo. But their presence alone should lift the Mavericks, with a reasonable path to another 10-15 wins if health cooperates.
There’s also a sense around the league that Dallas is being overlooked. Flagg heading into year two after one of the best rookie seasons in recent memory, combined with Irving having had over 15 months to recover from his torn ACL, gives the Mavericks a real chance to surprise people.
If both players stay healthy, the idea of Dallas getting back to the playoffs with two All-Stars is very much on the table.
In Other News...
Mavericks Fans Are Fuming Over A Season Ticket Change
The Mavericks latest tweak to their partial season-ticket menu has already landed with a thud among some fans who have built their plans around getting into American Airlines Center a handful of times each winter. For the 2026-27 season, two of the teams 10-game packages will now include one preseason game instead of a regular-season date, a change that replaces part of the value some buyers expected when they locked in their seats.
A Mavericks spokesperson said six of the eight season-ticket options will still be made up entirely of regular-season games, but the shift has not stopped frustration from spilling onto social media. The bigger complaint, beyond the preseason swap itself, is that marquee matchups are also being left out of these packages, leaving some longtime holders feeling like the team is asking them to pay more while getting less of the games they actually want. [Read more 🡒]
Mavericks Just Added A Wing Prospect With A Real Chance To Matter
Tarik Biberovic is now part of the Mavericks mix, and he arrives with the kind of profile Dallas has been trying to stack around its core: a wing who can also handle the ball and fit into different lineup looks. The move gives the front office another prospect to evaluate, and it came through a trade that brought his draft rights to Dallas as the team kept searching for ways to add talent and versatility.
Biberovic has already spoken like a player eager to make the jump, embracing the start of his NBA path and treating it as a real opportunity rather than a formality. The next question is how quickly he can turn that optimism into a role, especially after leaving his European club behind and with the Mavericks hoping he can earn steady minutes as he settles into a guards workload. [Read more 🡒]