Bronny James and Cooper Flagg faced off in one of the most exciting games of the Summer League this season as the Lakers and Mavericks went against each other. Bronny James had a strong start, but Cooper Flagg eventually got going as well.
After a strong first half, Flagg seemed to cool down a bit, as he did not score in the third or fourth quarter. He finished the game with 10 points, six rebounds, and four assists. Bronny finished the game playing 20 minutes with eight points, two assists, and two rebounds. The Mavericks won the game 87-85.
Following his first quarter against the No. 1 pick, Bronny James spoke to the sideline reporter and expressed his initial thoughts on Flagg during the game itself.
“He’s a quick, powerful big, so we’ve got to do everything we can to stop him and slow him down. But he’s a great player and he’s going to get his at some time. Just got to do a great job at stopping him down.”
Bronny James interviewed talking about his game start off the game and then talks about Cooper Flagg pic.twitter.com/sco6y9kvVl
— LakeShow Highlights (@LSH_lakeshow) July 11, 2025
James finished the first half with 8 points and 1 assist, while Flagg had 10 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 steals in that same duration.
The stage was set for both these young players to ball out as the star-studded crowd in attendance had the likes of Kyrie Irving and Bronny’s mother, Savannah James, in the building to show their support.
Bronny made the first two quick buckets to get five of his eight points in the first few minutes of the game. Flagg then found his momentum after slamming a thunderous dunk on the fast break that fired up everyone who was watching the game.
Bronny and Flogg put a lot of pressure on each other from the beginning of the game. They were directly matched up with each other as Jason Kidd apparently wanted to experiment with Flagg in the guard role, despite him being a forward. He may have asked the Summer League coaching staff to use Flagg that way and hence we saw constant action between the duo in the game.
Bronny was expected to be on a minutes restriction in the summer league. He only played 11 minutes in the Lakers’ matchup with the Heat. However, tonight the coaching staff seems to have changed their minds on him, as he played 18 minutes in the first three quarters.
Ryan Nembhard led all scorers in the game for the Mavericks with 21 points and five assists, while Cole Swider did the same for the Lakers with 22 points and 10 rebounds. The Lakers will face the Pelicans in their next Summer League game, while the Mavericks will face the Spurs.
