Cooper Flagg has played in arenas across the NBA this season. Friday night will be different. The Dallas Mavericks face the Boston Celtics at TD Garden on Friday, the second night of a back-to-back and the third game of a six-game road trip. For most players, it is just another road game.
For Flagg, who grew up in Newport, Maine — about a three-hour drive from Boston — it is the one game on the schedule that has carried personal weight since the moment the calendar came out.
Flagg was asked after Thursday’s 115-114 loss to the Orlando Magic what playing at TD Garden for the first time as a professional means to him. The answer came quickly.
“I’m excited,” Flagg said. “I know there are going to be a lot of people showing up from Maine. I’m really excited to be up there for the first time and play in that arena. It really was the only arena I went to as a little kid.”
Cooper Flagg Grew Up Watching Jayson Tatum and Modeled His Game After Him
The homecoming carries an extra layer on Friday. Jayson Tatum is expected to make his season debut for the Celtics after missing nearly 10 months with a right Achilles tear sustained during the 2025 playoffs. Flagg grew up watching Tatum and, by his own account, modeled his game on what Tatum built from his Duke days through his rise in Boston.
The two share a path — Flagg followed Tatum to Duke, won ACC Player of the Year as a freshman, and was the first overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. Tatum was the third overall pick in 2017. That connection made Tatum’s recovery something Flagg has followed closely.
“He was one of the guys I grew up watching, kind of modeled my game after,” Flagg said. “He’s special. His whole recovery has been nothing short of incredible. How hard he’s worked — you have to give him so much credit for being so driven. It’s a great opportunity. I think it’s going to be a really fun game. He’s somebody I’ve always looked up to. And I’m excited to face off with him, for sure.”
Tatum has not played since rupturing his Achilles tendon in May. His return Friday against the Mavericks — with Flagg on the other side — sets up one of the more anticipated individual storylines of the regular season’s final stretch. The last time these teams met, on Feb. 3 in Dallas, Flagg scored 36 in a 110-100 loss, as Jaylen Brown poured in 33 and Payton Pritchard added 26 off the bench.
Dallas Mavericks Need a Win to Stop a Five-Game Losing Streak
The personal significance of Friday’s game does not change what the Mavericks need from it. Dallas has lost five straight and sits at 21-41 with 20 games remaining. The road trip runs through Boston, Toronto, Atlanta, and Memphis after Friday, before the team returns home on March 13.
Flagg returned from an eight-game absence Thursday night and played 26 minutes on a restriction. He finished with 18 points, five rebounds, six assists, and a career-high four blocks, but Dallas blew a four-point lead in the final 37 seconds. Heading into Friday, he is no longer on the injury report. Klay Thompson scored 24 points on seven three-pointers in his own return from a right adductor contusion and is listed as probable. Naji Marshall also returned from a four-game absence. For the first time in weeks, the Mavericks had something close to a full group — and Thompson noticed.
“It felt good to have somewhat of a complete team,” Thompson said. “Injuries have been a tough part of the deal. It just felt great to have some numbers out there.”
Thursday was only the second time since the trade that brought Khris Middleton to Dallas in the Anthony Davis deal that Flagg and Middleton have shared the court together. Mavericks coach Jason Kidd acknowledged the chemistry between those two and the group as a whole is still being built, and framed the final 20 games as a chance to find out what this roster can look like.
“Naji’s having a heck of a year for us,” Kidd said. “When we lost him and Coop, it put us in a hole. To have those two back — Naji, his ability to score, run the offense — we’ve now found another asset that we can play with Coop. And hopefully we can see some of these lineups with Middleton out there to see how that goes.”
Kyrie Irving and Dereck Lively II remain on schedule to return next season. Daniel Gafford, who had 12 points and 13 rebounds Thursday, is listed as doubtful Friday with right ankle injury management. Marvin Bagley III is also doubtful with a neck sprain. Brandon Williams is probable with a left quad contusion. For now, Friday at TD Garden is the next step — a homecoming game against the best team in the East, on the night their superstar comes back.
Friday’s tip-off is at 6 p.m. CST on ESPN.
Latest Dallas Mavericks News & NBA Rumors
- NBA News: Cooper Flagg Becomes Second-Youngest Player In NBA History To Score 1,000 Career Points, Joining LeBron James
- NBA News: ‘Trading Twos For Threes’: Jason Kidd Lays Out Why Dallas Mavericks Can’t Keep Playing This Way
- NBA News: ‘We’ve Been Terrible At It All Year’: P.J. Washington Won’t Sugarcoat Dallas Mavericks’ Rebounding Struggles
- NBA News: ‘That Number Won’t Change Unless We Actually Shoot Them’: Brandon Williams Calls Out Dallas Mavericks’ Persisting Three-Point Struggles
- NBA News: Kon Knueppel Now Favored For 2026 NBA Rookie Of The Year As Cooper Flagg Nears Return
- NBA News: ‘It’s Tough Mathematically’: Charlotte Hornets Rout Dallas Mavericks As Three-Point Disparity Proves Overwhelming
