Cooper Flagg scores 18 in return from injury as Mavericks lose

Cooper Flagg returned to the Dallas Mavericks‘ lineup Thursday night after missing eight games because of a left midfoot sprain and had 18 points and six assists in a 115-114 loss to the Orlando Magic.

Flagg’s three-point play with 37.3 seconds left gave Dallas a four-point lead, but Orlando scored the last five points. He finished 7-of-22 shooting in 26 minutes and added five rebounds and four blocks, including three in the fourth quarter after he had taken a couple of hard fouls.

“Obviously, the hardest part is not playing. I love to compete, I love to play basketball, so having that taken away from me for a while is tough,” he said. “But it’s a good way for me to learn and get perspective, watch from a different angle. I think I learned a lot in the last couple of weeks, but I was definitely ready to get back out there and compete.”

The Mavs have not ruled out Flagg playing in both ends of the back-to-back set, with the second game in Boston on Friday night. Flagg has said he rooted for the Celtics while growing up in Newport, Maine.

Flagg injured his foot in a Feb. 10 loss to the Phoenix Suns, forcing the No. 1 pick to miss the Rising Stars game during All-Star Weekend.

Flagg, 19, has averaged 20.4 points, 6.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists in 49 games. The only other rookies to average at least 20 points, six rebounds and four assists since the ABA-NBA merger are Luka Doncic, Michael Jordan and Larry Bird.

“Coop is going to be a superstar in this league,” said Klay Thompson, who scored 24 points for the Mavericks on Thursday. “It’s been a pleasure to be his teammate, and I’ll be excited to tell future generations that I got to play with him in his rookie season.”

Flagg, however, has been surpassed by former Duke roommate Kon Knueppel as the betting favorite for Rookie of the Year. Knueppel has played a major role in the surging Charlotte Hornets‘ midseason turnaround, averaging 19.2 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists while shattering the rookie record for made 3s while shooting 43.6% from long range.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.