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DALLAS — Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle compared Cooper Flagg’s second-season jump to the one Luka Dončić made in Dallas, before Flagg scored a season-high 43 points against the Pacers on Monday night at American Airlines Center. Carlisle coached Dončić for his first three NBA seasons with the Dallas Mavericks before leaving for Indiana in 2021.
Dallas traded Dončić to the Los Angeles Lakers in February 2025, four months before taking Flagg first overall in the 2025 NBA Draft. Carlisle made the comparison while speaking with reporters before Monday’s game.
Indiana came into the night at 3-7. Dallas was playing the second night of a back-to-back after beating the Brooklyn Nets 130-93 on Sunday.
“Getting the experience of the first year under your belt, because both those guys were Rookie of the Year,” Carlisle said. “I presume that gives you a lot of confidence.”
“And then they have a whole summer to build on that and can take all that equity that they’ve built up with their teammates, in the league, everything else to the following year,” Carlisle continued.
As a rookie in 2018-19, Dončić averaged 21.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 6 assists while shooting 42.7% from the field and 32.7% from 3-point range. In 2019-20, his second season, those numbers rose to 28.8 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 8.8 assists on 46.3% shooting from the field and 31.6% from 3.
Flagg won Rookie of the Year last season after averaging 21 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 4.5 assists in 70 games. He shot 46.8% from the field and 29.5% from 3-point range.
Dallas reached the playoffs in two of Carlisle’s three seasons with Dončić. Both runs ended in the first round against the LA Clippers, in 2020 and 2021.
“It’s clear to me that Flagg has gotten stronger,” Carlisle explained. “Luka got stronger his second year as well. There are some real similarities between the two players even though they are different, but they’re both doing it with great size, they make plays with the ball, they can score from anywhere on the floor, and they have a real physical impact on the game offensively.”
“Luka is just so strong and Flagg is even stronger,” Carlisle continued. “Luka was a great rebounder, too, and I think Flagg is as well. There are similarities with those guys. They’re both great and are getting greater.”
Rick Carlisle Breaks Down Cooper Flagg’s Playmaking
Flagg came into Monday averaging 24 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 7 assists through nine games. He was shooting 47.7% from the field and 26.2% from 3-point range.
“He’s a great player,” Carlisle said, “and it’s rare to have a guy 6-9 or 6-10, whatever height he is, that handles so much in pick-and-rolls and has such a great feel for making plays and scoring, being a threat to score, and then being able to make the late pass.”
“[He] makes a lot of passes to their big guys and their athletic wings, and his shooting continues to get better,” Carlisle continued. “First game we played them, he hit the two threes, I think, in the first quarter, and they made a run that really put us up against it early in the game.”
That first meeting came Oct. 23 in Indianapolis, where the Mavericks won 121-105. Flagg had 14 points, 5 rebounds, and 6 assists in the first half before leaving with left shoulder soreness. Dallas led 77-43 at halftime.
Flagg Scores 43 In Win Over Pacers
Flagg finished Monday’s 125-122 win with 43 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 steals. He shot 16-of-25 from the field, 3-of-6 from 3-point range, and 8-of-8 from the free-throw line in 39 minutes.
Indiana led 66-56 at halftime and by as many as 13 points. Flagg scored 30 of his points after the break, including 14 on 6-of-6 shooting in the third quarter.
Flagg and Kyrie Irving scored Dallas’ first 13 points of the fourth quarter. Irving finished with 35 points on 11-of-18 shooting, including 7-of-10 from 3-point range, in his first back-to-back of the season.
Pascal Siakam scored 29 points for Indiana, 26 of them in the first half. Aaron Nesmith added 18 points, and Andrew Nembhard had 12 points and 12 assists.
Flagg’s career high is 51 points, set as a rookie. Through 10 games this season, he is averaging 25.9 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 6.9 assists while shooting 50% from the field and 29.2% from 3.
Dallas improved to 7-4 and has won three straight. The Mavericks visit the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday, with tip-off at 7 p.m. CT.
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