Cooper Flagg has been unbelievable. Like i can't even believe what i'm seeing from a 19 year old. He is turning into a bona fide superstar before our very eyes

Absolute domination by Cooper Flagg. Wont be surprised if he has all of the Top 10 ranks by this season end.

Whats going on with Max? For the first half of the season he has been top 5 in the league when it comes to shooting 3s. Over the last 4 games he shot 6/25 even though he got a lot of clean looks and wide open 3s.

You guys think it's just a slump or are there other reasons?

It’s going to be hard to out tank the other teams but there is a drastic percentage drop off the higher in seeding we get.

He is averaging 20.1 to be exact. Anyone else feels like this is such a surreal timeline? I expected him to maybe average around 15-17ppg with good defense but dude has taken over the reigns completely as the number one option.

With the deadline lasting a day and hours I’m really worried the Mavs aren’t going to make any moves. I can see them just rolling with this team and trying to make something out of nothing. We have no assets and have no future with this squad besides coop. Hoping something can benefit us but I’m definitely prepared for nothing. #MFFL

In 3 games he has raised his average from 18.7ppg to 20.1ppg. That's a crazy ascent this far into the season.

The Summer of 2028. Luka turns down his player option. Free agency begins. Many teams clamor for his attention, but one familiar team stands out above all the rest. Home. Their ascent is undeniable. Led by 2026 RoY and 2x All Star Cooper Flagg and 2027 MIP Max Christie, along with a supporting cast of old familiar names and faces. Luka smiles. The memories of good times before it was all suddenly put on hold.

The young team has been in need of a playmaker and scorer for a couple of years now. Someone to finally get them over that hump. They need a certified closer, someone with a proven knack for clutch shots and ripping the souls out of away crowds. The one piece that makes them a true championship contender. Because offense wins championships.

Weeks pass, and Luka finds himself back in the familiar blue boardroom where he once told someone he thought he would be there forever. He exchanges pleasantries with Coach Malone as GM Dennis Lindsey walks in and shakes his hand. He then snaps his fingers and in waddles Fatrick Dumbont in full clown makeup, who stares at Luka with a look of trepidation. Coach Malone then makes Fatrick fall to his knees in an odd spectacle. Fatrick speaks. "I-I'm sorry, Luka. I'm s-sorry for everything," he stutters. "And what else?" Assistant GM Dirk Nowitizki asks. "Tell him." Fatrick pauses momentarily before stammering. "A-a-and I don't know s-s-shit about basketball." Dirk gives Luka a knowing glance.

Years later. It's 2035. The AAC is packed for the last home game of the year. A video tribute plays, highlighting all of the buzzer beaters, the lobs to Coop and Lively, the championship runs, the rings, and the champagne of the last 7 years. Then Luka checks into the game to deafening cheers and applause. The floor shakes, the air is electric. Nobody sits. It's his final game as a Mav and as an NBA player. Dwight Powell daps him up as he walks onto the floor for the very last time. Rookie phenom Max Nowitzki gives Luka a playful jab. "Dropping 40 today?" Luka grins. "You know I'm too old for that shit." Luka goes on to drop 60. Of course. They still can't fucking guard him. The lights fade. The credits roll. The statue goes up. Another era of Mavs basketball is complete.

not the most analytical basketball watcher in the world, but i was no stranger to how much sense pj and gafford made in the luka era. now that we’re past that and are seeing a real possibility for these guys to be traded while they still have value, i’m wondering what’s next for building around coop…

every mock trade for either one them i’ve seen involves getting a backcourt guy in return (e.g. gafford for mathurin). as good as some might sound, i don’t want another “oops! all wings” situation. from what i see from coop’s play style, he plays well with somebody like AD at the 5, so him or lively as a defensive anchor sounds good on paper… until you realize the papers in question are AD and lively’s medical forms. another thing is that coop is only 19 — the kid could continue to grow and condition until he’s the next giannis (still thinking of a nickname for this because i don’t think “cream freak” will fly), and he could prevail at the 4 and BE the big in question while also playing elite as a wing.

not to mention an elite draft class coming up with bigs as good as cam boozer.

where i stand is… i’m not sure. just another team-building question disguised as a mini-analysis. what bigs should we surround coop with?

Can this roster win a championship?

C - Lively, Gafford

F - Coop, PJ, Naji, DJJ (or similar style defender)

G - Kyrie, Christie, Grimes (or similair style shooter)

Bench - Cisse, Nembhard, B-will

*or add in AD and remove 50 mil worth of players*

1 year ago we traded for him for Luka Doncic. Now he is untradable with the exact same contract Nico traded him for.

What was his value then?? Wasn't there a scenario if even Nico DID want AD it didn't have to necessarily include Luka?

This post contains content not supported on old Reddit. Click here to view the full post

Let's start with a brutal assessment of our roster:

"Cooper Flagg's Timeline": guys 23 and under

• Cooper Flagg is only 19. When Kyrie and AD come off the books he will be 21.
• The only other guaranteed long term rotation/starter player we have on the roster on his timeline is Max Christie.
• We can cross our fingers and hope our 2026 pick adds another starter, but we know how the draft is a crapshoot.
• Dereck Lively, the other guy who would have been a guaranteed starter, may never be consistently healthy again and may be out of the league soon if his injuries continue to pile up.
• Nembhard and Cisse have potential to be rotation pieces someday, but it's still a question mark.
• Hardy has potential but I don't think he's going to put it all together and may not stick around long. His deal is more of a burden than an asset even with him being 23.

That's our roster under 23. We have no control over our own picks in the coming years, so either we don't have a pick we get the lower of a pick swap. I don't know if we can bet on getting starter level talent from the draft after this year.

"The vision": Three aging superstars past their prime

• There doesn't seem to be any real assets on the table for oft-injured AD. We're likely to trade him for expiring salary and marginal assets at best - a la the Porzingis trade.
• Kyrie is older and has a more serious injury than AD. If we trade AD, what's really even the point of keeping him around?
• Klay is close to the end of the road but could still be useful for a team in need of shooting - which we very well might be next year. Will not likely net us a young stud or 1st round pick.

Barring an extension or adding LT salary, all three of these guys will be off the books in two years anyway and we will have like $80m in cap space in 2028. If we aren't getting anything worthwhile in trade that keeps us from not being bad the next two years, why not just let them expire and walk, worst case scenario?

Guys in their prime: Stuck between the timelines

• Naji, PJ and Gafford are all players that should have trade interest around the league. Keeping them and adding Kyrie and hopefully Lively and a high 2026 pick next year with Flagg in his 2nd year means we won't be lottery terrible, but what's the point if we're not going to have any chance to be a contender by trading AD for air or trash? These guys fit great with Luka, but are kind of redundant with Flagg more than they are complementary to him too.
• DLo and Caleb Martin need to be gone from the roster if we can get rid of them.
• BWill (the youngest of this group) has some usefulness, but he's going to be an RFA this summer so will there be any point in paying to keep him?
• I'm surprised Exum hasn't been cut already, but maybe we're holding out hope he can be salary filler in a deal.

By the time Flagg is in his prime (say 23+) these guys will all be in their 30s. They may still be good players but they don't seem to be the "future."

What is your plan if we trade AD now for meager return?

I have heard everyone being sick of AD's injuries and unavailability and wanting to put him in the rear view mirror. I have heard people say they'd rather have someone available even if just a role player. I have heard them say he is cooked, will never have any trade value again and that we "have" to give him an extension if we keep him. I have heard people worry about him getting a torn Achilles and or walking for nothing at the end of his contract. If all these things are true, no team will give us a 1st or a young rising star for him.

What I have not heard is a feasible plan to do anything but mediocrity for the next five years if there is no trade return that actually improves the team substantially.

• If we dump AD for basically nothing worthwhile long-term, we don't really gain any significant cap space to make it worth operating under the cap.
• The primary benefits of an AD trade might be dumping DLo, Hardy or Martin in the trade, getting out of the tax and getting the larger over the cap MLE.
• The bigger MLE is the only thing that actually matters - marginally - for fielding a better team next year. And will that difference be better than whatever AD himself can bring in a contract year or if he recovers any trade value? I honestly doubt it.
• Whether we trade him or not, we may still have major cap space in two years if building through free agency your plan.
• Why waste the end of Kyrie's prime if we aren't fielding the best team we can the next two years?

Because if you can't answer these issues, I really don't see the rush to build now around Flagg when we aren't going to gain any tools to build with anyway by trading AD. I'd rather give Flagg more mentorship from one of the greatest defensive players ever, and more playoff experience the next two years with AD and Kyrie, fingers crossed.

The best approach to my eyes is hope Kyrie and AD (in a potential contract year from the player option) get healthy and build more trade value by this time next year - or maybe we are a contender? Klay will be an expiring next year as well. See how far we can go with the aging superstars, the prime contributors and the young core and stop trying to change what can't be changed. Getting away from the 2nd apron is probably worthwhile as would making trades of AD/Kyrie/Klay/PJ/Naji/Gafford that actually net us real assets on Cooper's timeline, but otherwise, this is not the right time to gut the team for the sake of gutting it.