Cooper Flagg followed a historic performance with another sensational outing, going for 45 points, nine assists and eight rebounds to lead the host Dallas Mavericks over the short-handed Los Angeles Lakers 134-128 on Sunday.
Flagg, fresh off becoming the youngest player in NBA history to score 50-plus points with his 51 on Friday against Orlando, flirted with his first career triple-double for an encore. The Mavericks rookie opened on a pace ahead of his record-setting outburst from Friday, going for 26 of his game-high point total in the first half.
Flagg’s strong start set Dallas (25-53) on course for the win, as they led almost the entire contest against the injury-thinned Lakers (50-28).
Los Angeles came into Dallas without Most Valuable Player contender Luka Doncic, lost for at least the final week of the regular season after sustaining a Grade 2 left hamstring strain in a blowout loss at Oklahoma City on Thursday.
The Lakers’ troubles were compounded with the announcement Saturday that their second-leading scorer for the season, Austin Reaves, would also at least miss the remainder of the regular season due to a Grade 2 left oblique strain.
LeBron James did what he could to pick up the slack, nearing a triple-double with 30 points, 15 assists and nine rebounds. James led all five Lakers starters in scoring in double-figures, including Luke Kennard, who completed his first career triple-double with 15 points, 16 rebounds and 11 assists.
But depth vexed Los Angeles, with Dallas’ bench outscoring the Lakers’ 46-35, and the Mavericks successfully created breakaway opportunities with 21 points on 12 turnovers.
Dallas built a 22-point lead behind P.J. Washington’s 15 points, Naji Marshall and Brandon Williams each scoring 13 and Klay Thompson knocking down three 3-pointers on the way to 11 points to support Flagg.
Thompson’s effort off the bench helped Dallas outshoot Los Angeles from beyond the arc, 14 of 32 to 8 of 27.
