Cooper Flagg or Derik Queen? NBA Fans Pick Top Rookie as Mavs Beat Zion, Pelicans

Cooper Flagg and the Dallas Mavericks earned their fifth win of the season with a 118-114 victory over Zion Williamson and the New Orleans Pelicans at home on Friday in NBA Cup play.

In a marquee matchup of rookies, No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg out of Duke posted a career-high 29 points with seven rebounds, five assists and two steals, while No. 13 pick Derik Queen out of Maryland finished with 20 points, seven rebounds, 11 assists and two steals.

Queen has averaged 11.7 points, 6.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists for the struggling Pelicans, who dropped to 2-14 and extended their losing streak to eight games.

Meanwhile, Flagg has averaged 15.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists for the Mavericks, who remained without Anthony Davis. Dallas improved to 5-12 but still sits near the bottom of the Western Conference standings.

With Flagg and the Mavs grabbing the win over Queen and the Pelicans, fans weighed in on the debate over who the top rookie has been so far between the former Montverde Academy teammates.

The Mavericks grabbed their first NBA Cup win at 1-2, moving into fourth place in West Group B, while the Pelicans remain in search of their first victory at 0-3 in group play.

The Pelicans held a 63-49 lead over Dallas at halftime, paced by 15 points from Trey Murphy III and eight from Queen. Flagg entered the break with eight points for the Mavericks.

In a tight finish, a Flagg basket off a Mavs steal and a three-pointer from Naji Marshall gave Dallas a one-point lead with 30.7 seconds remaining. A clutch defensive block by P.J. Washington on a potential game-winning three sealed the win.

The Mavericks will close out their back-to-back when they host the 5-11 Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday.