Cooper Flagg, wearing a replica of the jersey former Dallas Mavericks No. 1 pick Mark Aguirre donned, brought fans at American Airlines Center to their feet late in the third quarter when he soared for the first posterizing dunk of his NBA career.
The Mavericks rookie caught a pass in stride from D’Angelo Russell and launched himself from the dotted line of the paint before throwing down a one-handed slam over Toronto Raptors big man Sandro Mamukelashvili.
Flagg erupted with a roar to celebrate what was the most memorable moment of his first win as in the NBA as the Mavericks claimed their first victory of the season in a 139-129 rout of the Raptors.
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Flagg led the Mavericks with a career-high 22 points with four rebounds, four assists and one block — his best statistical performance through his first three games.
Nostalgia was the theme Sunday night as the Mavericks officially kicked off their celebration of their 45th anniversary season. An alternate court featuring the team’s old-school cowboy hat logo set the stage and the Mavericks debuted their green Classic Edition uniforms the franchise adopted during the 1980s.
Despite losses in the first two games, Kidd went with the same jumbo-sized starting lineup of Flagg, Klay Thompson, PJ Washington, Anthony Davis and Dereck Lively II. The Mavericks had more success sharing the ball and those passes translated to scoring opportunities.
The Mavericks had a season-high 32 assists, which led to 50 field goals on the night.
Davis was the first player to embrace Flagg following his highlight dunk. The Mavericks big man led the Mavericks with 25 points and 10 rebounds, asserting his will over the Raptors thin frontcourt. Davis was efficient from the field, making 11-of-14 from the field and he was exceptional defensively with two blocks and three steals.
D’Angelo Russell only played eight minutes of Friday’s loss to the Washington Wizards. He received more opportunity on Sunday, but struggled offensively. After seven misses to start the game, Russell’s first field goal was a contested 3-pointer as the shot clock expired.
Once that triple went down, Russell caught an offensive groove and finished 8-of-18 from the field for a season-high 24 points, five rebounds, six assists and a game-high plus-26.
“Gotta get it how you get it,” Russell said after the game. “Definitely opened doors for me to feel a little more comfortable, just seeing one go in other than a free throw.”
Turnovers continue to be an issue for the Mavericks. Coming off Friday’s turnover nightmare of 21 giveaways, the Mavericks committed 20 on Sunday. They had 12 turnovers in the first half, but improved their ability to take care of the ball in the second half. The turnovers were overshadowed by the efficient shot-making. Dallas connected on 50-of-85 from the field, 10-of-26 from 3 and 29-of-39 from the free throw line.
Daniel Gafford missed his third straight game with a right ankle sprain. Brandon Williams also missed the game because of a family matter. Despite his absence, two-way guard Ryan Nembhard did not play until the final two minutes of the game.
Scottie Barnes led the Raptors with 33 points, 11 rebounds and six assists. Brandon Ingram added 22 points, six rebounds and three assists. Mamukelashvili and RJ Barrett chipped in 16 points each.
After a two-game losing streak to start the season, the Mavericks are officially in the win column. The timing couldn’t be better with defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder coming to town Monday on the second night of a back-to-back.
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