Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg reveals one of his biggest adjustments in NBA: 'It’s the most I’ve lost'

Through eight games in his NBA career, Cooper Flagg is getting a sense of what it’s like to lose at the highest level.

The No. 1 overall pick hasn’t done much losing leading up to this point in his basketball journey, and he admits it’s a whole different feeling as someone individually learning the ways of the NBA.

"For me, it’s the most I’ve lost since, ya know, I think ever? It’s obviously a lot different and you have to adapt to playing a lot more games and get used to that," Flagg said during a press conference. "I wouldn’t say anybody’s happy. Guys try to stay levelheaded and know that we got a lot more games to go and it’s still really early.

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Cooper Flagg of the Dallas Mavericks moves the ball down court against the Houston Rockets during the first half at Toyota Center on Nov. 3, 2025 in Houston, Texas. (Alex Slitz/Getty Images)

"Speaking personally, I know it’s not fun to just keep losing and losing games, so (would) like to make a change and hopefully start taking steps in the right direction."

During his single season at Duke last year, Flagg only saw four losses. While playing for Montverde Academy in Florida—after starting his high school career at Nokomis Regional High School in Maine—he also didn’t lose much, as Montverde went on to win a national title, and he was named the Naismith National High School Player of the Year.

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But the Mavericks have gone 2-6 to start the 2025-26 NBA season, which includes a Wednesday night loss to the New Orleans Pelicans, who had just one win in seven games entering the matchup.

As it stands on Thursday, Dallas is at the bottom of the Western Conference standings in 15th place.

Cooper Flagg talks to the media during the 2025 NBA Draft - Round One on June 25, 2025, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.  (Mike Lawrence/NBAE via Getty Images)

Now, it doesn’t help that the Mavs are also playing without two of their veteran stars alongside Flagg. Kyrie Irving has a potential season-long injury, while Anthony Davis is already sidelined this season.

The Mavericks haven’t been blown out in their losses, but they haven’t been able to secure those close-game victories. The game against the Pelicans saw that situation, and it was Flagg who had the ball in his hands with less than 10 seconds left while trailing by two points.

Flagg had a shot in the lane, but he missed his opportunity to tie it up, and the Pelicans secured the rebound and the win in the process. Flagg finished with 20 points and nine rebounds in 35 minutes on the court.

"We got to a good spot, somewhere I was able to get throughout the second half of the game. I got to a good spot, put one up on the rim — it just didn’t fall," he said.

Cooper Flagg of the Dallas Mavericks leaves the court following a game against the Indiana Pacers at American Airlines Center on Oct. 29, 2025 in Dallas, Texas. (Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

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Flagg has had a good statistical start to his NBA career, averaging 14.4 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. He would just like to start winning more while contributing to his Mavericks team in the box score.

"It’s been fun to be able to compete at a high level," he added. "There’s a lot I can look back on and a lot of film to watch and learn from playing against good defenders like that. Some good learning experiences and moments to look back on and hopefully improve."

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