Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg is among the most hyped up prospects to enter the NBA in recent history, and ESPN’s experts are certainly very high on him. ESPN commenced its rollout of NBA Rank for the 2025-26 season with Nos. 100 to 51 on Tuesday, and Flagg came in at No. 52.
“The 18-year-old Flagg, who might be the most anticipated American prospect since LeBron James, arrives in the NBA in a distinctive position of being a No. 1 pick on a veteran-heavy roster with playoff aspirations. Mavs coach Jason Kidd plans to give the 6-foot-9 Flagg plenty of opportunity to prove that he can flourish as a point forward.
“Kidd took a similar approach with a young Giannis Antetokounmpo in Milwaukee, but the Greek Freak wasn’t surrounded by 30-something future Hall of Famers the way Flagg will be in Dallas.”
Flagg, whom the Mavericks selected with the first pick in the 2025 Draft, ranked above quite a few big names. Here are some of the notable players placed below him on this list.
54. Paul George
60. Austin Reaves
61. Zion Williamson
63. LaMelo Ball
68. Tyler Herro
72. Zach LaVine
77. Brandon Ingram
80. DeMar DeRozan
83. Jonathan Kuminga
91. Jrue Holiday
Now, keep in mind, these rankings are based on who the panelists think will be better in the 2025-26 season. So, is Flagg likely to outperform all of those names below him?
Most of them averaged over 20 points a game last season, and Tyler Herro even made the All-Star team. So, it’s doubtful Flagg can pull it off, but this is an indicator of how that hype train is chugging along.
Former No. 1 pick Blake Griffin hailed Flagg as the most complete prospect to enter the NBA in recent years. The 18-year-old averaged 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.4 steals, and 1.4 blocks per game for Duke in his freshman season.
Flagg then managed to impress in his brief Summer League stint too, averaging 20.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.5 steals, and 1.0 blocks per game. Dirk Nowitzki has given him his seal of approval, and the talent is clearly there. Still, will we look at him as a borderline top 50 player in the NBA by the end of this upcoming season?
Victor Wembanyama and Luka Doncic might be the only rookies we could have said that about in the last 10 odd years. The chances of Flagg being as good as they were aren’t great. That said, he is going to get the opportunity to impress.
With Kyrie Irving recovering from an ACL tear, Flagg is set to have an extended run at point guard. He will have the ball in his hands a lot and is surrounded by quite a few talented players, with Anthony Davis being the standout.
If Flagg plays his part in this Mavericks offense flowing smoothly and also defends at a high level, as he is expected to, then perhaps these panelists would be proven right. Time will tell.
