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Yahoo Sports’ Draft Live crew reacts to the Dallas Mavericks’ selection of Duke forward Cooper Flagg with the 1st overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.
The pick is in the number one overall pick in the 2025 NBA draft.
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It is a shocker.
Cooper flag, Cooper flag.
Congratulations to him going number one overall to the Dallas Mavs.
Uh, Kev, I’ll start with you.
What’s the ceiling for Cooper flag this next season in the NBA?
It is, you know, I think for him, you’re going to see Cooper flag make an instant impact as a.
Quality high level role player, it’s hard to expect all-star returns from a rookie, but I think with him, you know you’re going to get defense.
You know you’re gonna get high effort.
You know on offense he’s gonna hit spot up threes and make the smart pass and cut to the basket, and I think for Dallas specifically what they’re gonna get is somebody who can contribute.
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Niko Harrison talked about how the Mavericks are gonna be back to contending.
Flag can play the 3 next to Anthony Davis.
In Gafford or lively, he can play some 4 lineup versatility, roll versatility.
That’s what Dallas is gonna get from his rookie season and ultimately in the long term we’ll see what he becomes as a shot creator, but so far the trajectory he’s on looks like a top 5, top 10 guy in the NBA.
And what else did Niko say he wanted?
He wanted defense like we talk about defense wins championship defense wins championships.
Oh my goodness, I’m getting for horror flashbacks.
and Luca, because how you know what, we’re not even gonna get into that.
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That’s a whole another story, but he can instantly make an impact on the defensive side.
You can throw him on the maybe not the best wing defender or best offensive player on the wing, but he can at least guard the second off second best offensive, uh, uh, threat, and he can guard 1 through 4.
So I think you talk about an instant impact, not just offensively because we know he plays the right way on the offensive side, but defensively is where I think he can make the biggest impact.
Think about this.
Hi, AD, and Lively or Gafford at that 5 spot, who, who’s scoring on that?
How can you score on that?
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It’s going to be extremely difficult to get easy, clean looks, especially at the rim.
Don’t forget, uh, Klay Thompson as well, so spacing out the floor a little bit more, and then you get Kyrie back and healthy looks pretty good.
Then what do you feel like the ceiling is for the Mavs as a team next season with Cooper Flag now?
Well, let’s be honest here.
Please, please, I feel like I have to present a little cold water here.
Sorry about that guys.
How healthy will they be?
Anthony Davis is how old?
right?
his best years have been are behind him.
You’re not going to get.
A better version of that player, Klay Thompson, old Kyrie Irving coming off of an injury.
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If you’re telling me that all are healthy, if you’re telling me that Derek Lively is improving and being back to the player that we saw his rookie year when they advanced to the NBA Finals.
Then we got a conversation because here’s the thing, the Oklahoma City Thunder are still the absolute best team in the NBA until further notice.
I think the good thing for Cooper Flag is unlike most number one picks, he does not have to come in and be the franchise savior, at least not internally, right?
Remember once again.
in the crates.
Tim Duncan, when he came to the San Antonio Spurs in ’97, they had David Robinson there.
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He was able to grow organically as a rookie.
Now granted, one of the greatest rookies we’ve ever seen, but he wasn’t put in a position where he had to carry a downtrodden franchise and every mistake was going to be magnified.
He’s going to be in a position to succeed in Dallas.
