The Dallas Mavericks continued their disappointing start to the 2025-26 NBA season with another loss on Monday night, falling to the reigning champion Oklahoma City Thunder with a 101-94 final score at the American Airlines Center.
No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg put forth the worst performance of his young NBA career so far, scoring just two points on 1 of 9 shooting from the field and 0 for 3 shooting from behind the 3-point arc. The 18-year-old rookie also recorded two rebounds and two steals through 31 minutes of action.
This lack of production could be connected to a hit Flagg took during the first possession of the game. From that point forward, the presumed NBA Rookie of the Year wore heavy wrapping on his left shoulder whenever he went to the bench.
“Cooper Flagg has had a big wrap on his left shoulder while on the bench throughout the game. Appeared to take a shot on it first possession of the night,” Mavericks insider Tim MacMahon of ESPN reported.
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After the game, Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd said Flagg played through shoulder soreness.
Kidd said the team will see how Flagg feels on Tuesday before determining his status for the rest of the week.
“We’ll see how he feels tomorrow. His shoulder is sore, we’ll see how he feels tomorrow. He played through it, he’s a tough kid, but we’ll have more tomorrow,” Kidd said, via Noah Weber.
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This disappointing performance comes just after the Mavericks’ first win of the season on Sunday night. In a 139-129 victory over the Toronto Raptors, Flagg recorded a career-high 22 points on 8 of 14 shooting from the field. The reigning NCAA National Player of the Year also had four rebounds, four assists, one block and a highlight-reel fast-break dunk.
The Mavericks will provide further details regarding Flagg’s injury status as they approach their next matchup against the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night.
