We know the Dallas Mavericks have said they plan to select Duke forward Cooper Flagg in the 2025 NBA draft on June 25 and will not entertain the possibility of trading away the No. 1 pick for a proven superstar.
But what if a trade offer landed on the desks of Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison and team governor Patrick Dumont that at least forced the organization to briefly consider the option … before saying no?
What is the near future for the Mavericks?
With less than a month before the two-day draft, we are examining some of the possibilities for Flagg’s future in the pros. Before landing the draft’s top spot in the lottery, Dallas was already labeled as a team that could contend in the Western Conference next season but only if it had a healthy roster. The addition of the No. 1 pick — a first-year talent who has been the uncontested top choice for the past year — has only heightened that.
Flagg would join a Mavericks team that has 13 players under contract from this past season’s roster, including Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving, who has a player option. Irving is probably going to sit out an extended period of time as he recovers from a torn left ACL sustained in March.
Dallas Mavericks has flexibility to make a trade, if one materializes.
The Mavericks have the Los Angeles Lakers‘ unprotected first in 2029 and the ability to trade their own first in either 2031 or 2032. They also have 10 players earning between $2 million and $16 million, including Klay Thompson, P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford.
Flagg could be entering as a star on a Mavericks roster that’s brimming with talented wings, but a franchise that is $17 million over the luxury tax and over both aprons. The Mavericks also have three tradeable first-round picks and two seconds.
There is the question of whether ownership would approve trading a No. 1 pick such as Flagg for Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo and the two years left on his contract.
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