Dallas Mavericks Win 2025 NBA Draft Lottery, Positioned to Select Duke Star Cooper Flagg
The Dallas Mavericks won the 2025 NBA Draft Lottery on Monday night, securing the No. 1 overall pick in June’s draft. Dallas entered the night with a 1.8% chance at the top pick after finishing 39-43 and losing in the Western Conference Play-In Tournament. A tiebreaker coin flip with the Chicago Bulls gave the Mavericks the slight edge for 11th-best lottery odds, but a leap into the top spot remained a long shot.
It marks the first time in franchise history that Dallas has landed the No. 1 overall selection.
The pick assures the Mavericks a chance to draft Duke forward Cooper Flagg, widely projected as the top prospect in the 2025 class. Flagg averaged 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.4 steals, and 1.8 blocks during his freshman season, shooting 48.1% from the field and 37.5% from 3-point range. He earned both ACC Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year honors while leading Duke to a Final Four appearance.
“It’s an incredible experience to be here, to have this opportunity,” Flagg said after the lottery. “I mean, it’s what I dreamed of since I was a little kid, so just to be here — it’s an incredible experience and a great opportunity.”
Flagg, a versatile two-way forward, has spent the spring preparing for his NBA transition.
“I think for me it’s always about just getting better all around,” he said. “It’s not one specific thing that I’m looking at. It’s just a collective group of things and trying to get better every single day.”
Dallas made it clear in recent months that its front office values two-way players, moving on from Luka Dončić in a blockbuster trade that brought Anthony Davis to Dallas and shifted the team’s identity. Flagg said he embraces that approach.
“Being a two-way player is something I’ve done since I was a little kid, so I’m just going to keep doing that to the best of my ability,” he said.
Joining a team that already features Davis and a foundation of complementary pieces could provide a rare situation for a No. 1 pick. While many top selections enter full-scale rebuilds, Flagg may walk into a playoff contender instead.
“I didn’t try to think about it too much,” Flagg said. “I feel like it was just kind of out of my control. So I’m just going through the process like everybody else and trying to enjoy every single moment — because you only get to do this once.”
The 2025 NBA Draft will occur on Wednesday, June 25, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
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