Cooper Flagg turned in another monster performance as the Dallas Mavericks snapped their three-game losing skid after beating the Los Angeles Lakers, 134-128, at American Airlines Center on Sunday.
Flagg dropped 45 points on 14-of-27 shooting to carry the Mavericks, who have only won twice in their last 10 assignments. Flagg also had eight rebounds, nine assists, and two steals.
It was an impressive follow-up to his 51-point explosion in their loss to the Orlando Magic, 138-127, at home on Friday. He became the youngest player in league history to score 50 points.
With his unreal performance versus the Lakers, the 19-year-old Flagg joined Allen Iverson as the only rookies since 1968 with back-to-back 40-point outings, according to DLLS Sports.
While Dallas will miss the playoffs for the second straight year, the team has a bright future with Flagg as the cornerstone. He has set multiple records in his maiden stint, putting himself in the same club as Luka Doncic, LeBron James, Jason Kidd, etc.
Flagg is in a neck-and-neck race with Kon Knueppel of the Charlotte Hornets, his former roommate at Duke, for the Rookie of the Year trophy. With both newcomers delivering record-setting performances recently, they are not making things easier for the voters.
To recall, Iverson won the award in 1997, besting everyone from his vaunted draft class, which included Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash, Ray Allen, Stephon Marbury, Peja Stojakovic, Antoine Walker, Shareef Abdur-Rahim, and Marcus Camby, among others.
