MACAO — Cooper Flagg scored 17 of his 19 points in the second quarter Friday and sat the entire second half as the Dallas Mavericks opened the preseason. It was the first NBA game for Mavericks coach Dusty May. The Houston Rockets built a 25-point lead before halftime and won 135-117 at The Venetian Arena, in the first of two NBA China Games between the teams this weekend.
Dallas never led. Houston opened on a 9-0 run behind Fred VanVleet, who went 3-of-4 from 3-point range in the first 2:42. The Mavericks shot 7-of-25 in the first quarter and fell behind 27-19. The Rockets pushed the margin to 58-33 on a Bogdan Bogdanović floater with 2:36 left in the second quarter and led 65-45 at the break.
May set Friday’s rotation around minute allocations and wanted to look at certain combinations together, he said. He was not trying to keep any group on the floor for a set number of minutes. Flagg, Morez Johnson Jr., and Daniel Gafford all sat the third quarter.
“We came here to learn more about our team, and were well aware that Houston would be able to expose some things that maybe we can’t do in practice, and they did that,” May said. “I thought our guys responded well in the second half and got closer to matching their physicality and effort. But overall, we’re pleased with how we finished the game. There’s a lot to clean up, but there’s also some bright spots from this one.”
Dallas outscored Houston 72-70 after halftime. A Tarik Biberovic 3-pointer with 7:23 left in the third quarter cut the deficit to 74-64, the closest Dallas came in the second half. Houston answered with 3-pointers from VanVleet, Kevin Durant, and VanVleet again. Reed Sheppard then went 3-of-3 from 3-point range in a 1:41 span late in the period, and the Rockets led 99-80 entering the fourth.
The Mavericks played without six players. Kyrie Irving was out with left knee rest and P.J. Washington with a left ankle sprain. Santi Aldama and Dereck Lively II sat after right knee and right foot surgeries, respectively. Caleb Martin was out with an illness, and Marcus Sasser with left adductor soreness. Dallas started Flagg, Zaccharie Risacher, Johnson, Max Christie, and Naji Marshall. Houston held out Marcus Smart and Clint Capela as coach’s decisions.
Dusty May Says Cooper Flagg’s Potential Is ‘Through The Roof’
Flagg had 2 points on 1-of-3 shooting with 2 turnovers in the first quarter. He opened the second with a 14-foot pull-up jumper, then blocked an Amen Thompson layup and finished the other end with an alley-oop dunk from Marshall to make it 27-23. He went 6-of-11 from the field and 4-of-4 at the line in 10:19 of the second quarter. He finished with 19 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists, along with a steal and a block, on 7-of-14 shooting in 19:02.
Dallas is not running much offense for Flagg yet, May said. The Mavericks are still learning how to make the play after the play.
“I thought Coop just overall played well. I thought his decision making was good,” May said. “I thought a couple threes were right on line. They looked good. I thought he was making the right plays, the right decisions. Just to see how competitive he is and he’s got a, when the lights are on he moves differently and that’s something that you don’t ever know until you experience, but just to see him in the game, his potential was through the roof.”
Flagg, the first overall pick in 2025, and Irving will be the fulcrum of whatever Dallas runs once more of its core players are back, May said. A team always builds its offense around its best players.
“100%. You’re balancing what he could be to not skipping steps. I thought he played really well tonight. His activity, his anticipation defensively, and we’re not running much stuff for him right now,” May explained. “We’re playing in the flow. We’re still trying to learn how to play as far as the play after the play better.”
“But, yeah, there’s a responsibility on all of us because I think any great player, their success is determined by everyone around them,” May continued. “So all of us to be better teammates, better players, better coaches will contribute to him maximizing his potential, but absolutely, we don’t take it for granted. This is a big responsibility to help him on his evolution into being one of the best.”
The crowd was loud and gave the Mavericks energy, Flagg said. The team arrived in Macao earlier this week and has been adjusting to the time difference.
“I definitely anticipated playing again on Sunday. I mean, this is a process for us of just ramping up and getting prepared to play and get ready for the regular season. So definitely there,” Flagg said. “And I felt good today. I think obviously the first wind was tough. I think everybody was pretty gassed up there for a little bit, but I thought the second wind hit pretty good and got into a good stride.”
Flagg made 3 pull-up jumpers from 14 to 16 feet in a 5:18 stretch of the second quarter. Playing against Durant over the years has taught him a lot, he said.
“Just being comfortable getting to my spots. And somebody like KD, I feel like I’ve learned a lot from him just playing against him over the years,” Flagg explained. “But just getting to your spots and playing at a slow pace. So that’s definitely something I’ve worked on, the spots that I like to get to on the court.”
Mavericks Search For New Identity As Houston Exposes Areas To Improve
The Mavericks attempted 51 3-pointers. Through three quarters, they had made 12-of-41 from deep, while Houston outscored them 42-34 in the paint and 25-15 in second-chance points. May said Dallas got little rim pressure.
“We took a lot of pride in taking what the game gives us, and with the lineups we had, with what we thought the strengths of our players on the court were, we decided to go into a different type of game. And we didn’t get much rim pressure, but also Houston is a team that, they take away the paint, they play with great activity, they are a ball defense,” May said. “And so I thought we settled down in the first half. They had us sped up. And when we did get the paint, we shot tough shots over some good defenders, good long athletic defenders.”
“And I thought the second half we found the right players, we got to actions quicker, we moved the ball better. And we just, we want to try to hunt great shots, whether that’s a dunk, whether that’s a back-cut layup, or if they’re gonna collapse and we can’t finish without angle, then we need to pass it to the open guy,” May continued. “And I thought the second half especially we did that. The first half it was, we just couldn’t finish possessions. They were able to capitalize on the offensive glass. I thought that was the biggest difference in point discrepancy.”
Houston grabbed 10 offensive rebounds in the first half and turned them into a 19-10 edge in second-chance points. Flagg said Dallas has a lot of 3-point shooters who are comfortable stepping into shots.
“Definitely, yeah. I think obviously we have a different identity, different culture. We’re trying to play faster, sharing the ball more. So I think naturally we’re gonna fall into some more threes and some easier ones too,” Flagg said. “I think just passing the ball and kind of just playing through the pass a little bit more. So it would definitely fall into some more threes. But I think we also just have a lot of three-point shooters, guys that are comfortable stepping in and knocking shots down.”
Risacher went 0-of-3 in the first quarter and had 9 points and 9 rebounds through three quarters, scoring 7 of them on 3-of-4 shooting in the third. Dallas acquired the first overall pick in the 2024 draft from Atlanta in a three-team trade July 19, and Friday was his first game with the Mavericks. Talking with his teammates and building chemistry in a real game helped him settle in, Risacher said.
“I feel like I just played free, just trying to be aggressive at first. Play free, just trying to be aggressive at first, and then the game started to slow down a little bit, and I was just getting that rhythm back,” Risacher said. “I feel like it was good being around my teammates, talking with them, creating, like I said, creating habits and chemistry in a real game. And just taking my time.”
Marshall finished with 16 points. Christie had 14 through three quarters on 4-of-11 3-point shooting, including a fast-break dunk that made it 72-61. Two-way rookie Tobi Lawal, the 48th pick in June, scored 13 points in 15 minutes off the bench. Sergio de Larrea had 11 points, 6 assists, and 4 turnovers in 23 minutes, and Biberovic added 9 points. Gafford scored all 7 of his points in the first quarter on 3-of-4 shooting, including a 3-pointer. Johnson had 4 points in 12:14, hitting a 3-pointer with 13.5 seconds left in the first.
Seth Lundy checked in with 4:43 left in the first quarter and went 0-of-3 from the field through three quarters. Lundy looked sped up early and settled in during the second half, May said.
“He’s had a good camp for us. He’s defended, he’s played team basketball. Defensively, he’s stuck his nose in and tried to compete at a high level,” May said. “I thought he settled into the game. Again, today he looked a little bit sped up early, and I thought in the second half he settled in. And once these guys started relying on each other, we started playing better.”
Kevin Durant, Cooper Flagg Look Ahead To Kyrie Irving’s Return
Alperen Şengün had a triple-double in 21:47 for Houston, finishing with 16 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists on 6-of-9 shooting. Tari Eason scored a game-high 20 points off the bench.
VanVleet played his first game since a torn ACL kept him out all of last season. He had 17 points and 7 assists and went 5-of-12 from 3-point range, with 9 of his points coming in the first quarter.
“Everything was a heat check today. Just trying to get one up, get one on the board, get it out of the way, get the rest off,” VanVleet said. “But just happy to be back.”
Durant went 3-of-3 for 7 points in the third quarter after shooting 4-of-9 in the first half. He finished with 15 points on 7-of-12 shooting in 23:12, and he wanted to end the night making a couple more shots.
“Yeah, I definitely wanna play a lot. I had to ask coach to play the second half. He was going to sit me the second half, but once I seen Alpi and Fred was playing, I had to get back in there,” Durant said. “I wanted to end the game off a little better, making a couple more shots for me, so it was good that I was able to see those go down and we get a good win. I’m just hungry to play. I just enjoy playing and I enjoy showing up to work, and so I want to do this as long as I can.”
VanVleet opens up a lot for Houston in the pick-and-roll and understands when to score and when to find teammates, Rockets coach Ime Udoka said.
“He always wants to play, and the plan was to shut him down at halftime. He wanted to get a little more reps out there with Fred and some guys he hadn’t played with as much, and so he’s not gonna play next game,” Udoka said. “And so we want to give him an extended run tonight.”
“Like I said, he never wants to come out of the game. So we tried to get him a few stints, but played a lot of regular season minutes last year,” Udoka continued. “We want to get that down to some extent and use our depth and not have to rely on him as much. And so get him a little run now and see how the rest of the preseason goes.”
Irving has not played since tearing the ACL in his left knee on March 3, 2025. May said Thursday that Irving will play in one of the two games in Macao, and Durant spoke with Irving the other day.
“I haven’t talked to Kai about his rehab. I spoke to him the other day. He says 18 to 19 months since he’s played an NBA game. I don’t know the exact number, but just being around Kai, his work ethic is second to none,” Durant explained. “His approach to the game, mentally, is second to none. He’s just a savant. When you think about basketball, you think about him. So I’m looking forward to seeing him back on the floor.”
“I know him as a human being, though. He’s a little anxious and excited. I wouldn’t say nervous, anxious to get back out there and just get in the flow of things. So I’m excited for him, man,” Durant continued. “So happy that he’s back and healthy and happy that Fred’s healthy, happy that Steven’s healthy. I don’t wanna see anybody in our game be away from the game that long, especially the ones who love it as much as these three. So I can’t wait to see him out there next game.”
Flagg and Irving have yet to share the court in a game. Irving’s gravity and the way he manipulates a game will make things a lot easier for him, said Flagg, who described the early chemistry between the two in practice a day earlier.
“Whatever ends up happening, I’m just excited. Whenever we get to share the court for the first time, obviously it’s been an incredible training camp to play together and kind of figure that out on the fly. It’s been fun and I’m really excited,” Flagg said. “Just sharing the court with someone like him and his gravity and the way he can manipulate the game is obviously going to make my life a lot easier. So I’m really excited to get the chance to share the court together, and whenever that is, it’s going to be great.”
Durant played college basketball at Texas and is entering his second season with the Rockets. He said he understands the history of the game and of the rivalry with Dallas.
“Oh yeah, for sure. Every time I get to play against the Mavericks, I’ve had so many great battles against the Mavericks, even as a young player. Dirk has always been one of my favorites. I enjoy competing against them,” Durant said. “And then when I moved to play for the Rockets, I understand the history of the game. I understand the history of this rivalry and it being right down the street. So I try to take part in being committed to rivalries like that. And it’s a special thing when we play Dallas.”
The Mavericks and Rockets meet again Sunday at The Venetian Arena, with tip-off set for 5 a.m. CT. Dallas returns home for preseason games Oct. 14 and Oct. 16 before opening the regular season Oct. 21 at Houston.
