Cooper Flagg did something no teenager had ever done on opening night, and it still wasn’t close to enough. Flagg scored 32 points Wednesday, an NBA record for the most ever by a teenager in a season opener. Dallas lost to Houston 128-110 anyway, trailing 70-38 at halftime in a game that was effectively over by the break. The easy story is a superstar who dazzled while his teammates collapsed. I’m not sure that story holds up.
Cooper Flagg NBA Record: 32 Points, Most Ever by a Teenager in an Opener
Flagg shot 10-of-17, made 11-of-13 free throws, and added five rebounds, three steals, two assists and a block. He hit the record-breaking jumper with 4:33 left in the fourth quarter, at 19 years and 304 days old. SI’s research points to Lamar Odom’s 30 points in his 1999 debut as the old mark. Look past the headline and the shape of his night is interesting. He took just eight shots in the first half, then scored 23 of his points after the break, going 8-of-9 from the field. He made exactly one three. The rest came at the rim, from the middle and at the line, where his 13 attempts were half of Dallas’ 26.
Flagg Didn’t Hide Behind the Record
Flagg skipped the history lesson afterward. “We got stagnant,” he said, explaining that once Houston went on its run, Dallas had no answers, wasn’t organized and wasn’t getting back on defense. Then he turned it on himself, saying the Mavericks need guys, himself included, to “be leaders out there” and that he didn’t think they had that. For a 19-year-old in his second season, that’s a bold thing to say in a locker room that includes Kyrie Irving, an eight-time All-Star playing his first regular-season game since a March 2025 knee injury.
The Second Quarter: 38-12, and Flagg Was in the Middle of It
Here’s where the tidy story breaks. Dallas played well for about 12 minutes, then Houston won the second quarter 38-12 to take a 32-point halftime lead. That’s the largest halftime deficit in a head coach’s first game with a team in NBA history, a rude welcome for Dusty May, who arrived fresh off a national title at Michigan. May said the Mavs “let go of the rope.” Flagg played 9:08 of that quarter, went 0-of-3 from the field and was a minus-21. Dallas’ 12 points came from his four free throws, four from Morez Johnson Jr., and two apiece from Marshall and Irving, which means the Mavericks didn’t make a three all quarter. They also turned the ball over 21 times for the game, leading to 32 Houston points, and Kevin Durant even dunked over Flagg. Durant, Jabari Smith Jr. and Alperen Sengun all scored at least 23.
What It Means for Dallas
Fair is fair: May said Flagg was Dallas’ best way to attack the paint and made good decisions, and that his assist total will grow once the open shots start falling. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst wrote during the Macao preseason games that Flagg’s ascent was starting to feel inevitable, and opening night did nothing to contradict that. It’s also one game, the first with Flagg and Irving together, against a Houston team that has played together for a full season.
But the record-setter wasn’t a bystander to the collapse. He was on the floor for most of it. My read: the Cooper Flagg NBA record will age well, and the number worth remembering from this opener is that minus-21.
Cooper Flagg NBA Record Is Real. So Is Dallas’ Second-Quarter Disaster.