Flagg’s Historic Christmas Performance Comes in Mavericks Defeat; Davis Out With Groin Strain
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No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg delivered another standout outing on Christmas Day, but the Dallas Mavericks fell to the Golden State Warriors in San Francisco. The 19-year-old rookie poured in 27 points on 13-of-21 shooting, collected six rebounds, handed out five assists and blocked one shot across 36 minutes.
According to the Mavericks, Flagg became only the third rookie in NBA history to post at least 25 points, five rebounds and five assists on Christmas, joining Oscar Robertson (1960) and Pete Maravich (1970).
After the game, Warriors star Stephen Curry praised the teenager’s poise during a courtside interview with ESPN’s Malika Andrews, calling Flagg “a true hooper” and noting, “The league is in good hands.”
Mavs Lose Anthony Davis to Another Groin Issue
The Mavericks also absorbed a major personnel hit when Anthony Davis exited with a right groin strain. The injury is considered mild, but the 32-year-old big man is expected to miss several games. Because of previous absences and two sub-15-minute appearances, he is now ineligible for end-of-season awards after just 32 games played.
InStreetClothes.com’s injury analyst Jeff Stotts noted that this is Davis’s 13th groin-related issue over his 14-year career. Historically, those setbacks have sidelined him an average of 2.7 games (eight days), slightly better than the league-wide averages of 3.6 games and 9.7 days for comparable groin strains.
Klay Thompson Treats Warriors as ‘Just Another Opponent’
Christmas Day also marked Klay Thompson’s first Bay Area appearance since joining Dallas in a sign-and-trade 18 months ago. Any anticipation of an emotional reunion quickly faded as the 35-year-old guard—held to seven points on 3-of-8 shooting in 26 minutes—said the Warriors are simply “an opponent” now, underscoring the business nature of his move.
Dallas returns to action later this week still without Davis and hoping Flagg’s rapid rise can help stabilize the rotation.
Source: Hoops Rumors
