Cooper Flagg’s first season in the NBA has not gone as planned and the rookie admitted it’s been tough.
Flagg, 19, has had considerable personal success this season and is in contention for the NBA’s Rookie of the Year award. However, the Dallas Mavericks are 24-52 and nowhere near playoff contention.
“Obviously, it’s been tough. Like you said, you know, through high school, college, I mean, I only lost four games last year. So there have been times of the season where it’s been, you know, really mentally taxing on me,” Flagg said during a recent appearance on ESPN’s “The Pat McAfee Show.”
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM
Anthony Davis played just 20 games with the Mavericks before sustaining a hand injury and he was eventually traded to the Washington Wizards. Star point guard Kyrie Irving tore his ACL last season and has not played this season.
Flagg hopes he can look back at the tough times and say he learned from them.
GRIZZLIES’ BRANDON CLARKE ARRESTED ON DRUG TRAFFICKING, SPEEDING CHARGES IN ARKANSAS
“Just not having success that I would’ve hoped for, and obviously, we’ve had a lot of injuries and a lot of unfortunate things happen throughout the year. It’s obviously not been ideal. I’ve had growth along the way, and I’ve had to get better and learn on the fly, but definitely not the start I would’ve looked for. Hopefully, eventually I’ll be able to look back on it and know that I was able to learn a lot from it,” Flagg said.
Flagg said he was thrown into the fire more than he expected, but added it’s helped him develop and become more confident and comfortable.
In 64 games, the Newport, Maine, native has averaged 20.3 points, 6.6 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 1.2 steals and nearly one block per game.
Flagg’s rookie season will continue when the Mavericks play the Orlando Magic (40-36) on Friday at 8:30 p.m. ET.
Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
