For NBA fans looking for the top players to appear in the Rising Stars Game on Friday night as part of the NBA All-Star Weekend festivities, they’re going to be disappointed that one of those stars is out.
The Dallas Mavericks have been trying to get their franchise back in order with a lot of work being done to build around rookie sensation Cooper Flagg. But he’s not going to be in the Rising Stars Game after all.
A Double Whammy for the Mavericks F Cooper Flagg
On Thursday, the Mavericks revealed that Flagg, a forward for Dallas, would miss not only the team’s Thursday night game against the Los Angeles Lakers at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, but also the Rising Stars Game.
Flagg would not have had to leave the Los Angeles area as the NBA All-Star Weekend festivities are taking place at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Calif.
According to the Mavs PR account on X, “The Mavericks announced today that forward/guard Cooper Flagg underwent an MRI that revealed a left midfoot sprain. The injury occurred in Dallas’ game at PHX on Tuesday. Flagg will miss the team’s game at LAL on Thursday as well as the 2026 Castrol Rising Stars game on Friday.”
Flagg was the Mavericks’ overall No. 1 draft pick out of Duke in the 2025 NBA Draft. According to his regular-season numbers, Flagg is averaging 20.4 points per game, 6.6 rebounds per game, 4.1 assists per game, and is shooting 48.2% from the floor.
The Mavericks appear to be going all-in on building a team around Flagg for their future. This might be even more true after the Mavericks traded Anthony Davis to the Washington Wizards at the NBA trade deadline.
Davis, of course, came to the Mavericks from the Lakers in last season’s blockbuster trade that sent Mavericks superstar Luka Dončić to Los Angeles.
Entering Thursday night’s game against the Lakers, the Mavericks were in fourth place in the NBA’s Southwest Division behind the San Antonio Spurs, Houston Rockets, and Memphis Grizzlies. At this point, it looks like Dallas will not reach the 2025-26 NBA postseason.
Flagg has provided plenty of highlight-reel moments this season. Mavericks fans probably hoped that their team would have potentially reached the postseason with Davis on board. But it’s not happening. Now, Flagg will miss some time with his injury. It’s hoped that he will be able to return at full strength once the NBA All-Star break wraps up.
