Grades and Takeaways from Cooper Flagg vs. Bronny James NBA Summer League Showdown
LAS VEGAS — Thomas & Mack Center was buzzing on Thursday night, when No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg and the Dallas Mavericks took on Bronny James and the Los Angeles Lakers.
Every time those two were matched up, the arena filled with "ooohs" and "aaahs." Each bucket from either young player caused the crowd to erupt.
But in the end, despite an electric start from both there weren't a ton of buckets from Flagg or James in Dallas' 87-85 win.
Bronny was 2-of-8 from the field and 1-of-6 from three (including a miss on a would-be game-winner). Flagg went 5-of-21, though he also tallied six rebounds, four assists, three steals and a block in his 31 minutes.
It's just one game (and a Summer League game, at that), but the performances gave us plenty to analyze.
Cooper is Huge for a... Guard?
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The Mavericks put a lot of trust in Flagg to handle the ball on Thursday (more on that later), and he looked like an obvious mismatch when lined up as a "guard."
Even when the Lakers had bigger and more experienced defenders like Darius Bazley on Flagg, he was able to absorb and play through a lot of contact.
One of L.A.'s goals appeared to be to fluster Flagg when he was on the ball. The Lakers were handsy, physical and played him tight on the catch, but it didn't really seem to faze the No. 1 overall pick.
When he was defended by Bronny James (the Thomas & Mack Center went nuts for each of those possessions), his size advantage was an even clearer.
On one play in the first half, Flagg caught the ball in the mid-post, where Bronny was eager to body up on him and try to push him out to the three-point line. Flagg didn't give an inch, calmly turned around and drilled a mid-range jumper over Bronny's outstretched hand.
There's been some buzz about Dallas wanting to play Flagg as a guard in the regular season, and Thursday suggested he can pull it off.
Bronny Wants the Smoke as a Defender
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Bronny still has a ways to go on offense (more on that in a bit), but he's more than eager to take on difficult defensive assignments. And although Flagg got the better of him a couple times, Bronny at least made his possessions difficult.
It continues to look as though that end of the floor is where Bronny is most likely to make any kind of impact on the NBA level. And though he's undersized for a guard, he has the wingspan (6'7.35") and tenacity to make up for a lot of that.
As a bulldog defender who can bully other smaller guards or at least stay in front of the bigger ones, Bronny may yet prove useful.
Flagg Looks Comfortable Bringing the Ball Up the Floor
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On Lakers makes or misses, Dallas was often intent on getting the ball to Flagg to start the possession (unless Ryan Nembhard was on the floor).
And for the most part, he looked comfortable playing the role of de facto point guard.
Lakers defenders, particularly the veteran Bazley, repeatedly tried to bump Flagg off his line, but he looked generally unbothered by the physicality. On more than one occasion, he was able to take the contact and then blow by the assignment.
He didn't force that kind of action, though. Flagg played with his eyes up, and on more than one occasion, led a teammate down the floor with a well-placed transition pass.
He showed playmaking instincts that must have Mavs fans excited, especially since head coach Jason Kidd carried out a similar experiment nearly a decade ago with Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Giannis obviously isn't a "point guard" now, but Kidd's insistence on him getting some reps there early in his career helped him develop his ability to create for others.
These early reps could have a similar impact on Flagg.
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Shooting is Still an Adventure for Bronny
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Bronny hit a three early in the game on Thursday, but he finished 2-of-8 from the field and 1-of-6 from deep.
On one wide-open attempt from the wing, he nearly hit the opposite bottom corner of the backboard.
And this performance comes on the heels of Bronny shooting 4-of-12 in two California Classic games earlier this week and 31.3 percent during the 2024-25 regular season.
He may be able to carve out a long career as a defensive specialist, but meaningful impact on the NBA level will almost certainly require Bronny to find more consistency with his jump shot.
Cooper's Opportunistic
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His final shooting line will suggest that Flagg played poorly, and he certainly won't be happy with that percentage. But he filled up the box score and showed off a feel for the game that will help him have much better nights from the field.
He was eager to run out in transition when possession changed hands, though not at the expense of the defense or his team's shot at a rebound. He made multiple smart cuts. And he combined effort with a knack for knowing when to jump into a passing lane or for a block.
On one of his first-half three-point attempts, he caught the ball at his face, realized a defender was closing fast and shot the ball without ever bringing it down. It didn't find its way through the rim, but the no-dip three looked natural for him.
A lot of the above is sort of subtle, but it concert, it led to a wide-ranging stat line and a good representation for the kind of feel he's bringing to the league.
Grades
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Flagg: B
Again, Flagg will be as frustrated as anyone over his 16 missed shots, but his general floor game was solid. He played with a serious motor, looked capable of defending multiple positions and filled up the ancillary columns on the box score.
Better shooting nights will come.
James: C
We won't be too hard on Bronny for his shooting struggles, either. In his case, he isn't likely to ever be relied upon for a lot of scoring.
He also gets some credit for how hard he plays on defense and how willing he is to take on tough assignments (like Flagg).
But those positives didn't really translate to an impact on the game. He was a minus-3, while every other Lakers starter was on the right side of the plus-minus ledger.
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