Mavs' Kyrie Irving Hypes Cooper Flagg Partnership, 'Looking Forward to Growing with Him'

Dallas Mavericks star Kyrie Irving is excited to begin playing alongside Cooper Flagg ahead of the 2026-27 season.

"I'm looking forward to growing with him and seeing how his development happens over the next few years," Irving said Thursday, per Grant Afseth of Dallas Hoops Journal.

The nine-time All-Star is preparing to make his return after missing the entire 2025-26 season while recovering from a torn ACL that he suffered in March 2025.

Flagg put together a stellar inaugural year in Irving's absence, averaging 21.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.2 steals per game on 46.8/29.5/82.7 shooting splits.

He earned Rookie of the Year honors for his efforts.

While Irving's on-court impact following the ACL tear is unknown, he should still be able to take some defensive attention off Flagg.

After all, the 34-year-old recorded 24.7 points and 4.6 assists per game while shooting 47.3 percent from the field and 40.1 percent from three-point territory during his shortened 2024-25 campaign.

Irving continued to thrive in one-on-one situations that year, as his 5.4 points per game in isolation ranked No. 5 among all players (via NBA.com).

Flagg was also looking forward to sharing the floor with the veteran.

"Whatever ends up happening, I'm just excited whenever we get to share the court for the first time," Flagg told reporters. "Obviously it's been an incredible training camp to play together and figure that out on the fly. It's been fun and I'm really excited. Just sharing the court with someone like him and his gravity. The way he can manipulate the game is obviously going to make my life a lot easier."

While Irving has been the subject of trade rumors, he currently remains with Dallas and is set to make his first appearance since the injury during a preseason clash with the Houston Rockets in China on Sunday.

Tip-off is at 6 a.m. ET.