Thursday night’s matchup between Cooper Flagg and the Dallas Mavericks and Bronny James and the Los Angeles Lakers was the fourth-most-watched Summer League game ever, per ESPN.

LAS VEGAS — He missed 16 of 21 shots, including all five attempts from deep, and airballed his first and final shots. And those who saw his NBA 2K26 Summer League debut still came away with a consensus gut feeling: Cooper Flagg is right on pace to be a problem.

Cooper Flagg made his NBA Summer League debut Thursday night and although he and the Dallas Mavericks earned the win, the No. 1 NBA Draft pick called it “one of the worst game of my life.”

Frenzy became bedlam on the next play. Flagg talked trash to James, ran to his spot on the left wing, pivoted off the catch and nailed the shot before turning to exult with his future Mavericks varsity teammates, who cheered him on decked out in casual wear from their courtside seats.

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Cooper Flagg strolled into UNLV’s Thomas and Mack Center at 4:17 p.m. on Thursday, wearing Dallas Mavericks gear, bright white New Balance shoes, and an emotionless look on his face as he passed through security.

NBA Las Vegas Summer League is underway, and the Los Angeles Lakers had an exciting matchup. Lakers guard Bronny James faced the Dallas Mavericks and rookie sma

On the first attempt, Bronny ended up fouling Flagg, so the Mavericks had the ball to inbound on the sideline. The ESPN cameras zoomed in on the Lakers' second-year guard and the Dallas No. 1 overall pick having a quick conversation.