On Thursday night, the Dallas Mavericks are set to pay a visit to the Orlando Magic. All eyes have been on the rookie Cooper Flagg, who was upgraded to questionable for the matchup.
Lately, Flagg has been off the court for the Mavericks. The last time he played was during the Mavs’ February 10 game against the Phoenix Suns on the road.
The rookie suffered a foot injury after a 35-minute showing in the 120-111 loss against Phoenix. Flagg wrapped up the game with 27 points and five rebounds.
The Mavericks missed Flagg for eight games in a row. With little updates coming from the team, many wondered if Flagg was staring at a potential shutdown. After all, the Mavericks have struggled to build a reputation for contending this season.
It turns out, ending the year prematurely isn’t in the cards.
Will Cooper Flagg Return vs Magic?
According to The Dallas Morning News’ Mike Curtis, Flagg is expected to return on Thursday night.
“The tentative plan is that he’ll likely be on a minutes restriction tonight,” Curtis reported on X. “If he progresses, he’ll see more usage for tomorrow night’s game in Boston.”
This season, Flagg has appeared in 49 games for the Mavericks. Being the 2025 No. 1 pick out of Duke, he garnered an immediate role in the starting lineup, while averaging 34.1 minutes per game.
The rookie has shot 48% from the field, averaging 20.4 points per game. He is coming down with 6.6 rebounds per game, while dishing out 4.1 assists, and coming up with 1.2 steals.
As well as Flagg has played, the Mavericks have run into some tough issues this year. The Anthony Davis experiment proved to be a failure. The team cut ties with the veteran, trading him to the Washington Wizards. Kyrie Irving initially planned to return this season, but he’ll take the entire year off as he recovers from a torn ACL.
Heading into the game on Thursday, the Mavericks are 12th in the Western Conference with a 21-40 record. They have lost four games in a row and have just seven wins on the road.
Despite the struggles for Dallas, they’ll feel good to have their top star back in the mix, as he continues to develop into one of the league’s top young stars.
The Mavericks and the Magic are scheduled for a 7 PM ET tip.
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