Marc Stein points to Mavericks’ Cooper Flagg dilemma in Rookie of the Year race

Cooper Flagg was the odds-on favorite to bag home the Rookie of the Year award before the 2025-26 season even began. A good opportunity awaited him with the Dallas Mavericks, as in the aftermath of the Luka Doncic trade, he has a chance to step in immediately and become the superstar talent the team needs to build around. And for what it’s worth, Flagg has been as good as advertised, if not way better.

While Flagg’s averages of 20.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game this season are certainly good enough for him to win the esteemed award, Kon Knueppel’s consistency for a much-improved Charlotte Hornets team may end up tilting the award away from the Mavericks star.

NBA insider Marc Stein, who has many connections with the Mavericks, also believes that the clash between what’s best for Dallas to end the year and what’s best for Flagg from an individual standpoint may be what throws a wrench in Flagg’s ROTY candidacy.

“The Mavs have 18 games left, and the truth is, if they can go 0 – 18 it would be the best thing for them. That’s the way the system is,” Stein said on the All NBA podcast. “The way the system is structured the best thing for the Mavs is to lose and to lose royally, and that’s obviously not going to be great if you’re chasing Rookie of the Year.”

Mavs face pivotal year in Cooper Flagg-centric rebuild

As Stein noted, 2026 is the final time the Mavericks control their own first-round pick until 2031. This just means that Dallas has all the incentive in the world to try and lose as many games as possible to get into a better position to add a blue-chip prospect in the 2026 NBA Draft.

This will be the priority of the team. Getting a potential co-star for Flagg for the long haul is imperative if they were to bounce back after the Luka Doncic tragedy.

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