The Dallas Mavericks lucked out when they beat the odds to land the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft lottery, but Cooper Flagg seems to have lucked out as well.
Leading up to the NBA draft lottery, Flagg's family and Duke coach Jon Scheyer were aware that the Washington Wizards, Charlotte Hornets, and Utah Jazz were the teams most likely to land the No. 1 pick in the draft, and thus the opportunity to take Flagg.
Though they looked for the positives in each place, they also recognized that Flagg would likely endure a losing season with each of those franchises—something he had not faced in high school or college.
"It would be hard for me to imagine Cooper going through a season with a lot of losing," Scheyer told ESPN’s Baxter Holmes.
When the Mavericks landed the top pick, Flagg's family, as well as the rest of the league, were stunned. With the Mavericks receiving the pick and expected to take Flagg, he has a much better chance at achieving success with his team early on. The Mavericks did not advance to the postseason this past year after trading Luka Doncic and dealing with a number of injuries, but they still have a talented core featuring Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving, and were just in the NBA Finals a year ago.
"To me, it's a dream spot," Scheyer said of the Mavericks. "I really feel that way."
"Dallas has been lucky for many years," Scheyer added. "They've been able to watch Dirk, Luka—so many winning teams. Now, you've got a guy in Cooper, who I think will carry that tradition forward."
Instead of immediately shouldering the responsibility for a franchise, Flagg will get to learn and be mentored by multiple All-Stars and championship-winning veterans. There's no guarantee the Mavericks become contenders again right away with Flagg, but Flagg appears to be in a much better place for early career success than imagined heading into the draft lottery.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Duke Coach Explains Why He's Happy Mavericks Will Likely Draft Cooper Flagg.
