Mavericks win NBA draft lottery in stunner

Field Level Media|published: Mon 12th May, 19:52 2025

NCAA Basketball: Final Four National Semifinal-Houston at Duke

Apr 5, 2025; San Antonio, TX, USA; Duke Blue Devils forward Cooper Flagg (2) dribbles the ball against the Houston Cougars during the second half in the semifinals of the men's Final Four of the 2025 NCAA Tournament at the Alamodome. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

The winner of the Cooper Flagg sweepstakes is the Dallas Mavericks.

The Mavericks surprisingly won the No. 1 overall pick in Monday's NBA Draft Lottery in Chicago, and will surely use the pick on Flagg, the Duke star who excelled as a freshman in his one college season.

Dallas will get the chance to draft Flagg just months after its controversial trade of Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Mavericks had just a 1.8 percent chance of landing the top pick. They became the team with the fourth-lowest odds to win the lottery. The 1993 Orlando Magic (1.52 percent) were the lowest.

Also claiming top-four picks were the San Antonio Spurs (No. 2), Philadelphia 76ers (No. 3) and Charlotte Hornets (No. 4).

The 6-foot-9 Flagg doesn't turn 19 until December and is projected to develop into a star early in his career.

Flagg won the Wooden and Naismith awards as the top college player last season. He averaged 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 37 games. He made 52 3-pointers and also had 52 steals and 50 blocked shots.

The NBA Draft is scheduled for June 25-26 at the Barclays Center in New York.

--Field Level Media