Cooper Flagg didn’t wait for help. He grabbed a defensive rebound, put his head down, and went the full length of the floor, slicing through two Memphis Grizzlies defenders before hammering home a coast-to-coast dunk that had the Dallas Mavericks bench up and the visitors looking around for answers.

It was the kind of “I’ve got this” moment the Mavericks drafted Cooper Flagg for. The rookie forward’s night wasn’t perfect, but it was loud. He posted 12 points, seven rebounds, and a steal in 33 minutes, going 4-of-15 from the field and 1-of-3 from deep, via the ESPN Box Score, while still finding ways to tilt the game with energy plays like that breakaway slam and a clutch fourth-quarter 3-pointer. 

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Dallas needed those sparks. Playing their fifth game in seven nights and still searching for their first win streak of the season, the Dallas Mavericks again leaned on a committee approach. Klay Thompson led the scoring with 22 points and six 3-pointers, Brandon Williams added 18, while P.J. Washington chipped in 15 points and eight rebounds. 

The Memphis Grizzlies, even without Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr., kept punching back behind Santi Aldama’s 20 points and Zach Edey’s work on the glass. Memphis pounded Dallas inside, winning the rebounding battle 59-41 and piling up 22 offensive boards to keep possessions alive, a problem the Mavericks have seen too often early in the year. 

That’s why Flagg’s coast-to-coast jam felt bigger than two points. On a night where both teams were missing stars and grinding through a low-scoring, physical game, the No. 1 pick was the one who broke the rhythm with pure force. If the Dallas Mavericks are finally going to stack wins, plays like that from Cooper Flagg are exactly where it starts.