NBA draft: US teen Cooper Flagg goes to Dallas Mavericks as top pick

The Dallas Mavericks made it official on Wednesday night by taking Cooper Flagg with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. A move that had been anticipated ever since they won the lottery. Despite having just a 1.8% chance at the top pick, the Mavs beat the odds and landed the player many expected to go first.

"I'm feeling amazing. It's a dream come true, to be honest," Flagg said after his selection, with his family by his side. "I wouldn't want to share it with anybody else."

Flagg’s rise has been closely watched ever since he reclassified to enter college a year early. At 6'8" and 221 pounds, he turned heads as a freshman at Duke, meeting—and arguably exceeding—the sky-high expectations. He put up 19.4 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.4 steals, and 1.4 blocks per game, earning consensus All-American and sweeping major player of the year awards, including the Naismith and Wooden honors. His efforts helped lead Duke to a 35-4 record and a trip to the Final Four.

Now, Flagg joins a Mavericks squad aiming to bounce back from a disappointing 39-43 season that ended with a loss in the play-in tournament. He enters a crowded but talented frontcourt featuring 10-time All-Star Anthony Davis, along with Dereck Lively II, Daniel Gafford, P.J. Washington, Naji Marshall, and Caleb Martin.

The Mavericks’ starting lineup could be even stronger once Kyrie Irving returns from a torn ACL, likely two or three months into the season. When he does, Dallas is expected to feature three one-and-done Duke products in the starting five.

Ironically, Irving’s injury, suffered on March 3 against Sacramento, played a role in Dallas ending up with Flagg. Already missing Davis due to a groin injury in his Mavericks debut a few weeks earlier, the team’s postseason hopes crumbled. The resulting slide contributed to their position in the lottery, and ultimately to drafting Flagg.

There was little doubt that Irving would re-sign with Dallas. He declined his $43 million player option for 2025–26 and agreed to a three-year, $119 million deal, including a player option in the final season.

Flagg, still only 18 until his birthday on December 21, becomes the second-youngest No. 1 pick in NBA history, just behind LeBron James, who was selected at a similar age in 2003.

Flagg is the second No. 1 overall pick in Dallas franchise history. The Mavericks took Mark Aguirre out of DePaul in 1981. Flagg’s coach, Jason Kidd, was the second overall pick by the Mavs in 1994.