Lakers Lose Close Game Against Mavericks In Cooper Flagg’s Summer League Debut
The much-anticipated debut of the first pick of the 2025 NBA Draft, Cooper Flagg, made his debut against the Lakers. Many were looking forward to this game, and it was more of a packed house than usual for an NBA Summer League game. Not only was he debuting, but he was also going up against Bronny James, who is LeBron James' son, who faced off against the number one overall pick. This matchup had ticket prices through the roof, with some tickets even going for a few thousand dollars. People would quickly find out based on their performance that there is still a lot of growth both players need to make.
The Lakers lost a close game, 87-85, to the Mavericks. Cole Swider, Dalton Knecht, and DJ Steward have been playing exceptionally well over the last couple of games. They almost brought the Lakers back to win the game after trailing the Mavs almost the whole game. Those three, more than Bronny James, have been the real stars of the team. Even though most of the sports media continues to push James as if he is. James is playing well, but not better than them. James ended up taking the last shot, which would have won the Lakers the game if it had gone in, but he missed. I think any of the other three players should have taken that last shot instead of James, but they ran it for the show and entertainment of it.
The Cooper Flagg show was a no-show in his debut. He struggled in his debut with 10 points. He did, however, contribute in every possible way. He also had six rebounds and four assists, along with three steals and a block. Though not the machine he was when playing in college, he did contribute nonetheless. He contributed more in his debut than Bronny has in almost all his Summer League and NBA career games combined. The sports world made this a matchup of Bronny vs Flagg when both players are still rookies and learning their roles. It was a marketing scheme that did work, but real sports fans knew that Bronny James wasn't the star of the team. Not the way Cole Swider and Dalton Knecht have been playing.
It was an entertaining must-see game that delivered in a few moments as both James and Flagg struggled. Flagg said after the game that he felt nervous playing against James. Whether it was delivered or not, this was great exposure for Swider, Knecht, and Steward as well as for the Mavericks' Ryan Nembhard, brother of NBA player Andrew Nembhard from the Indiana Pacers. It was great that they had an audience so they could display their talents and show why they deserve to be on an NBA roster.
