Whereas most prime picks enter the league with little assist and sky-high expectations, 18-year-old Cooper Flagg finds himself in a uncommon spot: becoming a member of a roster filled with veterans with championship resumes, together with Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving, and Klay Thompson.
“Lots of people on this place or this case aren’t granted this chance,” Flagg mentioned throughout his introductory press convention. “So I simply really feel actually blessed and grateful for the state of affairs I’ve been given. I’m simply trying ahead to being a sponge. Simply getting down right here, I’m excited to simply study, soak all of it in and study from the fellows which might be older and have been by means of all of it earlier than.”
The Mavericks snagged the No. 1 choose regardless of holding only a 1.8 p.c probability within the lottery, following a season derailed by accidents to Davis and Irving. T
hat lottery win got here only a yr after a Finals run led by Luka Doncic, who was traded to the Lakers this previous season in a blockbuster deal that introduced Davis to Dallas.
Even with Irving nonetheless recovering from a torn ACL, and Doncic gone, the core round Flagg stays sturdy.
“These guys have a lot data,” Flagg mentioned of his veteran teammates. “They’ve been by means of a lot, and so they have a lot expertise that it’s simply going to be an unbelievable alternative for me to study and develop below them.”
Flagg isn’t shying away from expectations, although appears to be taking a grounded strategy.
“I’m coming in simply making an attempt to study and making an attempt to get higher each single day,” Flagg mentioned. “If I can try this to one of the best of my skill, I believe expectations and pressures that different folks will placed on me and our group, that may type of work itself out. So I’m simply making an attempt to come back in and be one of the best that I could be and simply win on the highest degree.”
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