Boston Celtics
Flagg said he loves being with the Mavericks and doesn’t want to be elsewhere. He’s also looking forward to playing at TD Garden for a long time.
Cooper Flagg AP Photo/Eric Christian Smith
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The crowd was loud, the number of jerseys with his name on the back were plentiful, and Cooper Flagg was back in New England for his first game at TD Garden as an NBA player Friday night.
Flagg, whom the Mavericks selected with the No. 1 overall pick in last year’s draft, grew up in Maine rooting for the Celtics. Boston was as close to a hometown team as he could get back then.
During his postgame press conference, Flagg was asked what the crowd was like and whether or not he’d like to experience it from the other side as a Celtic one day.
“Nah, I love being a Maverick,” Flagg said. “That’s home and I don’t want anything else. It was incredible to be able to play here, obviously this is the place where I came as a kid and got to watch, so I think it’s going to be incredibly fun for the rest of my career for me to be able to come here and playin front of this crowd.”
Flagg, who is in the first year of his rookie deal, likely won’t hit free agency until 2030. Bringing him to Boston before then would probably have to involve a trade. He is under contract for next season, and the Mavericks have a club option for 2028 and 2029.
With Flagg averaging 20.3 points and 6.5 rebounds as a rookie with room for his game to grow, hanging onto him as long as possible seems like the logical move for Dallas unless something unexpected happens.
Despite losing to the Celtics by 20 points during Jayson Tatum’s return, Flagg seemed to enjoy the experience of playing in Boston.
“I had a lot of people come up from back home. Having that experience was really cool,” Flagg said. “The energy was incredible tonight, obviously, with Jayson coming back. The energy was great, it’s an incredible environment and an incredible place to play.”
His time in Texas is just beginning, and this isn’t the Mavericks’ last trip to TD Garden. But, there’s nothing like the first one, and this was a moment that Flagg wanted to savor.
“It meant a lot. I tried to take a moment to take a deep breath and take it all in,” Flagg said. “It’s a dream come true just being out there on that court competing and playing at a high level. It’s really special.”
Khari A. Thompson
Khari Thompson covers professional sports for Boston.com. Before joining the team in 2022, Khari covered college football for The Clarion Ledger in Jackson, Miss.
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