Cooper Flagg became the youngest player in history to score 35 points in an NBA game, helping the team Dallas Mavericks They cruised to a 114-110 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday night.
The 18-year-old shot 13 of 22 from the field in his 20th career game. The top player in this year's draft also had eight rebounds. The only 18-year-old player to score 35 points in an NBA game is LeBron Jameswho did it twice in his debut season. He first appeared when he was 18 years and 348 days old, five days older than Flagg was on Saturday.
“He's only 18 years old, but he seems like he's played in this league before,” Mavs coach Jason Kidd said. “He did it all tonight. He had the ball. You can call him a point guard or whatever, but he ran the offense for us. He dribbled the ball. The ball touched the paint. He got to the rim, got to the free throw line, came up and made free throws for us late. Just his composure on both ends.” [impressed me]. He performs at a very high level. You saw it tonight, but you saw it last night.
Flagg also impressed in Friday's game when he faced Lakers James. He had 11 assists in that game. NBA a record for an 18-year-old. His 35-year-old teammate Klay Thompson is another fan.
“Cooper’s growth potential is limitless,” Thompson said. “He has all the tools to be great. Sometimes I can't believe he has to be a freshman in college.”
Flagg was aggressive all game against the Clippers, including a spectacular dunk over Ivica Zubac.
“Being aggressive now is obviously the right thing for me and that's what coach emphasized to me,” Flagg said. “I have to be aggressive and we will accept some mistakes, but you just have to be aggressive and trust the whole job.”
Thompson was also impressive, hitting four 3-pointers in the fourth quarter and his final goal putting Dallas ahead for good with 1:51 left. Overall, he made 6 of 10 shots from long range as the Mavericks snapped a three-game losing streak. He finished with 23 points, 17 of which came in the final quarter.
Kawhi Leonard led Los Angeles with 30 points and eight rebounds. James Harden added 29 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds for the Clippers, who lost their fourth straight game. John Collins scored 21 points and Ivica Zubac had 19 points and 11 rebounds.
Los Angeles (5-15) has lost seven straight at the Intuit Dome after beating New Orleans 126-124 on Halloween night. The Mavericks (6-15) scored 20 points off the Clippers' 18 turnovers.
