CHICAGO (AP) — The ping-pong balls have spoken: Cooper Flagg might be headed to Dallas to start his NBA career.
And a fan base that lost Luka Doncic this season might have a new star to cheer for.
The Mavericks won the NBA draft lottery on Monday night, giving them the No. 1 pick in next month’s draft — and the first chance to take Flagg, the freshman who led Duke to the Final Four in his lone college season and the consensus player of the year.
A screaming-for-joy Mark Cuban called new Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont — who was at his child’s track meet — with the happy news, and just like that, there’s something to root for in Dallas again after a tumultuous few months where Doncic got traded and the Mavs missed the playoffs. Cuban was so excited that Dumont evidently couldn’t even make out the words he was saying. He just figured they were good ones.
“I am so happy for Mavericks fans,” Dallas CEO Rick Welts said, clutching the envelope with the No. 1 emblazoned on it. “I only got to Dallas January 1st this year. February 1st, we broke the internet. I am just amazed at the depth of emotion and connection that the fan base has with this team. And what happened today, I can’t imagine a better day for Mavs fans. It’s going to really be something special. I can’t wait to get back to Dallas.”