Jul 15, 2025 | Los Angeles, NBA, Sports, Valleys

Flagg and the Mavericks outlast the Lakers in his Summer League Debut

Las Vegas, July 2025- The Thomas and Mack Center was packed Thursday evening to the NBA Summer League debut to see the Dallas Mavericks number one draft pick Cooper Flagg take on the darling of last year’s draft, Los Angeles Lakers Bronny James. Though the game would be tight throughout, the Lakers used what amounted to a home crowd to pull out an 84-82 win over the Mavericks.

By Cameron Buford with Voice of the Fans

Though Flagg shot 5-21 from the floor and 0-5 from deep, he did show some courage in his Summer League debut by challenging a couple of Lakers on drives to the rim. He even tried to back down the Los Angeles Lakers’ Bronny James… Flagg drew a foul on James, who poked the ball out from behind before the whistle blew giving the ball back to the Mavericks. On the very next possession, Flagg, with James guarding him used his size to turn and shoot right over him for two of his 10 first-half points.

During winning time, Flagg blocked a dunk attempt, then dished to Ryan Nembhard, who hit the go-ahead three-pointer, with 1.03 seconds left on the game clock. Bronny then entered the game with .59 seconds remaining to get his chance at hitting a game-winning shot.

“The ball was in his hands at the end of the game, and that’s exactly like we want it to be,” said Lakers coach Lindsey Harding. “He’s the leader. At the end of the game, I want the ball in his hands. I want him to make those decisions. He’s going to play on ball and off ball for us.”

“He knows that, especially for our guys coming back, summer league is great for them and great for their development,” coach Harding added. During the season they have other leaders that they look to; for Summer League we expect for them to be the leaders.”

James ended the game with 2-8 from the field and 1-6 from deep for eight points, two rebounds, and two assists in his 21 minutes on the court.

“It’s basketball. I feel comfortable with the ball in my hands at all times, if I need to take the last shot it is what it is,” James shared post-game.

Cole Swider led the way for the Lakers in this game by scoring 22 points on 6-9 shooting from three-point range and pulling down 10 rebounds. Ryan Nembhard led the Mavericks with 21 points on 8-14 shooting and handed out a team-high five assists.

The Mavericks will take on the San Antonio Spurs Saturday, July 12, and the Lakers will take on the New Orleans Pelicans also on Saturday night in front of another semi-home crowd, as they did when they played the Mavericks with. Please share your thoughts on this topic with me on X at https://x.com/whatsgoodnsport