After 16 games of getting knocked around by the rest of the NBA, the Mavericks finally found a team they could beat: the equally woeful Pelicans.
Dallas's much-needed 118–115 victory over its Southwest Division foe Friday, however, took a backseat to the feats of the game's leading scorer. In the best scoring performance of his young NBA career, Mavericks guard Cooper Flagg racked up 29 points to go with seven rebounds and five assists.
Flagg’s total was not only an NBA career high, but it exceeded all but two games he played in his sole season at Duke in 2025. With the Blue Devils, Flagg dropped 42 points against Notre Dame on Jan. 11 and 30 against Arizona in the Sweet 16 on March 27.
Twelve of his points came in the fourth quarter, and they helped Flagg win a duel with New Orleans center Derik Queen—a former teammate at the Montverde Academy in Montverde, Fla.
The 18-year-old Newport, Maine native entered Friday averaging 15.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. His Dallas squad hasn't fared quite as well; its 5–12 record trails the Jazz by 1.5 games for the Western Conference's final play-in spot.