The Dallas Mavericks made the not-so-surprising decision to shut down Cooper Flagg earlier this month following his second game of NBA Las Vegas Summer League. Two starts was more than enough for management to see that Flagg is ready to go as a rookie and projected impact player in the Mavericks’ lineup.
Outspoken Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green, who previously stirred the pot this month with his takes on free agency, took issue with the double standard placed on NBA veterans relating to workload and rest yet franchise are doing the same with first-year players.
While Green didn’t mention Flagg by name, it’s obvious he made the connection with the overall No. 1 pick who was sent home after erupting for 31 points in his second summer league start last weekend.
“I find it very interesting that players get bashed for ‘load management’ but rookies get shut down during summer league these days … fascinating huh,” Green wrote this week on Threads.
The NBA has studied various load management reports in recent years, hoping to rectify a common fan complaint when superstars sit for rest. In January 2024, the league sent a 57-page report to media and players indicating findings through 10 previous seasons of data did not make it clear that resting players makes them less susceptible to injury.
NBA free agency rumors: Knicks, Kings linked to Ben Simmons as injury concerns mount
Brad Crawford
Flagg’s 21-point scoring outburst was the most by a No. 1 pick in the summer league play since John Wall in 2010.
Matt MacKenzie, Flagg’s longtime player development coach, spoke with CBS Sports this week about Flagg’s next steps.
“Cooper will head back to Dallas to get settled in and workout at the Mavs practice facility before heading to Maine in August for a couple weeks,” MacKenzie said Tuesday. “He’s headlining a basketball camp for a couple days, and we’ll continue his training up there as he prepares looks ahead to the rookie transition program and the start of training camp.”
Flagg said he felt “exhausted” after consecutive starts involved him shouldering most of the ball-handling duties for the Mavericks. This was all part of the plan, according to Dallas coach Jason Kidd, who previously said the franchise wanted to make Flagg “uncomfortable” early on since Irving will be on the shelf much of the regular season following a knee injury.
Previously, Green said Flagg holds an unlikely luxury as the top pick, one most rookies rarely experience. Green mentioned Flagg joining well-established superstars Kyrie Irving and Anthony Davis, stressing the point there’s no expectation as a rookie to be a franchise savior of sorts in Dallas.
“I don’t think he could have asked for anything better as the No. 1 pick,” Green said last month on the Draymond Green Show with Baron Davis. “You ain’t gotta go average 25 points on a bad team or 20 points on a bad team.”