Cooper Flagg officially becomes the boss of the Mavericks

In the space of one big year, Mavericks changed drivers three times. Until February 2025, everything revolved around Luka Doncic, the superstar and face of the franchise. Then the unthinkable happened, with this surprising transfer to Los Angeles. The Chiefs then were Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving. Finally, a year after the earthquake, Texans decided to turn the page on their interior, too fragile to influence the debates, and thus give the keys to the truck to Cooper Flagg.

Not forgetting that in the meantime and if we keep the automotive metaphor, they also changed the engineers for their car with the departure of Nick HarrisonThe GM responsible for this exchange was never accepted by the fans at American Airlines Center.

Forced to “turn a little” towards the title?

“We have an incredible player in Cooper Flagg”, says Michael Finleyinterim GM with Matt Riccardi. “So it’s up to us to do the work, to surround him with the right pieces. The selection drafts have been received (two first round drafts, three second rounds) are good. With that kind of draft capital, we have the ability to put the right pieces around him to make this team a title contender. With these tools we can do that. »

In addition to the arrival of the draft pick, this transfer also allows the Mavericks to save money and be subject to the “luxury tax”, which is always interesting to maneuver in the future. This future, we understand, has a name.

“His start to his career is crazy. We’re going to go a long way with him and some of the guys in this locker room.”announces Jason Kidd. “He showed us his talent for two or three weeks and if he continues in this direction… This transfer gives us the flexibility to go in different directions and move forward.”

Rebuilding a team with a rookie and focusing on the draft, after all, isn’t that what rebuilding is all about? “We can think of a reset, but we think there is only one guideline: progress and victory. Nothing has changed »assures the coach of Dallas. “Sometimes the road is not straight and you have to take a small detour to get where you want to go”adds Matt Riccardi. “But our goal remains the same. We want to win titles and have the team to do it.”

“We want players who embody what Flagg embodies”

It’s a shame we haven’t seen Cooper Flagg, Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving play together in even one game this season… “The fans would probably like to see that” admits Michael Finley, who hopes to seduce them with this February 2026 election.“When I played here, there was always a certain excitement. We didn’t always win at the beginning, but the enthusiasm was there and the fans saw how it could be. Now we’re in the same situation: with a guy like Cooper Flagg, if we surround him well, we can bring the excitement back.”

This is one of the goals of the GM who considers it “Dallas fans deserve it”. A fundamental question remains: If a talented rookie is to be surrounded in the right way, then what should these players look like?

“We want players who embody what the Flag embodies: that is toughness, intelligent, collective players, tough defenders, who think of the team first, not themselves.” states Matt Riccardi. “These are the players who win the league. Our job is to collect as many as possible and put them on the field. What can take us to the next level is not technical qualities, but more character.”