No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg enters the 2025-26 season as a heavy favorite to take home Kia Rookie of the Year honors, leaving a challenge for the field.

Will Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg be the first Duke University alum to win an NBA player of the year award?

Dallas will be taking on the San Antonio Spurs for the third year in a row, and this one comes with some fascinating storylines. There's the obvious about Cooper Flagg making his NBA regular-season debut. He passed the tests in the Summer League and the preseason, but it'll be an entirely different animal in the regular season.

NBA veteran Klay Thompson outlined clear expectations for Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg before the 2025-26 season.

Flagg is competitive to a fault, but he’s sacrificed personal success for the sake of his teams many times growing up.

Cooper Flagg will make his regular-season debut on Wednesday and a new Gatorade ad voiced by Dirk Nowitzki sets the tone.

NBA award predictions 2025-26: Nikola Jokic MVP, Victor Wembanyama DPOY, Cooper Flagg for ROTY, and more originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg is set to make history this week as the NBA rolls out its new “Debut Patch” program and the No. 1 overall pick gears up for his professional debut.