The Dallas Mavericks fell 101-94 to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday, with Cooper Flagg watching most of the fourth-quarter comeback from the bench. The rookie was dealing with left shoulder soreness after taking contact on the opening possession and sat out crunch time despite playing 31 minutes.
Dallas trailed by as many as 22 points before cutting the deficit to one with 54.8 seconds remaining, but Flagg had checked out with 8:14 left and returned only for two late defensive possessions.
Following the game, head coach Jason Kidd addressed the benching decision, per Tim MacMahon of ESPN.
“It wasn't his night tonight,” Kidd said. “We're a team, and so understand that the group that was out there put us in the position to win the game. He wasn't on the floor, but he was cheering for his teammates.”
Flagg shot just 1-of-9 from the field and finished with two points, two rebounds, and two steals in 31 minutes. The rookie acknowledged he had no problem with Kidd's decision and understood the reasoning behind it.
“The way the game was going, we had a group out there that was doing really well and was on a run, so I see where Coach was at with that,” Flagg said. “And I mean, I was flat. I wasn't myself. I wasn't impacting the game at a high level, wasn't doing the right stuff. So obviously, that's an easy decision for Coach. He was just out there trying to win the game.”
Oklahoma City's length bothered the Mavericks down the stretch, with Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein making key plays to seal the win. Flagg is listed as day-to-day and will undergo scans on his left shoulder before Wednesday's game against the Indiana Pacers.
His shooting struggles came one night after a 22-point, turnover-free performance against the Toronto Raptors, where he became the second 18-year-old in NBA history to post 20-plus points with zero turnovers. The back-to-back schedule and shoulder issue likely contributed to his dip in production.
Kidd credited Flagg for being a “tough kid” by playing through pain, but emphasized the team will evaluate how he feels before making any decisions about his availability moving forward.
