In an absolutely shocking turn of events, the Dallas Mavericks have won the NBA Draft Lottery for the first time in franchise history and have earned the top overall pick.
Despite holding only a 1.8 percent chance of getting the top selection, Dallas won the lottery ahead of their in-state rivals, the San Antonio Spurs.
Behind the Mavericks will be the Spurs with the second overall pick, then the Philadelphia 76ers with the third overall pick. The Charlotte Hornets and Utah Jazz round out the top-five.
It’s been a chaotic year for the Mavericks. General manager Nico Harrison came under fire for an absolutely disastrous deal that sent franchise star Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for a trade package headlined by Anthony Davis.
Now, it’s likely thanks to that terrible trade that Harrison has the chance to draft a new face-of-the-franchise in Duke freshman Cooper Flagg.
The Maine native will almost assuredly be the first selection in the draft when it takes place on June 25 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
Dallas Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison holds the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft
With the top selection, it’s likely the Mavericks will select Duke freshman Cooper Flagg
Flagg was the No. 1 recruit in the country out of high school and chose Duke over a strong, but late, effort from UConn.
In college, Flagg averaged 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game.
With the Blue Devils, Flagg went all the way to the Final Four in San Antonio. However, with the ball in his hands on one of the final possessions of their semifinal game against Houston, Flagg missed his shot and Duke lost – denying him the chance to crown his college career with a championship.
However, Flagg earned plenty of individual honors – including five of the six awards for National College Player of the Year.
Beyond Flagg, the group of expected top picks include a pair of Rutgers stars projected to be selected second and third overall: guard Dylan Harper and forward Ace Bailey.
In addition, Baylor forward VJ Edgecombe, Oklahoma guard Jeremiah Fears, Texas guard Tre Johnson, Maryland center Derik Queen and a pair of Flagg’s Duke teammates – guard Kon Knueppel and center Khaman Maluach – are expected to be high picks.
Dallas has only picked first overall once in their history – in 1981, prior to the lottery being implemented. With that pick, they selected forward Mark Aguirre.
The Mavericks winning the top pick follows on from the Dallas Wings winning the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft.
Flagg was one of the top recruits in high school and was the best player in college last year
But Flagg missed this shot in the Final Four, failing to reach the national championship game
Dallas also had the top pick in the WNBA Draft. The Wings took UConn’s Paige Bueckers first.
Last month, the Wings selected Paige Bueckers out of UConn with the top choice.
It’s the second time in history that a city has held both No. 1 picks in the WNBA Draft and the NBA Draft.
The last time this occurred was 2003. The WNBA’s Cleveland Rockers selected LaToya Thomas out of Mississippi State in what would be their final season before folding.
Meanwhile, that same year, the Cleveland Cavaliers selected an Ohio high schooler named LeBron James.
