Cooper Flagg hurts shoulder on Aaron Nesmith flagrant

Dallas was up big and Flagg was cooking when, with about a minute left in the first half, he took off on a fast break and Nesmith came from behind him.

ClutchPoints

@ClutchPoints

Cooper Flagg headed to the locker room with a shoulder injury after this hard foul by Aaron Nesmith. Nesmith was assessed a flagrant 1 for this play. Additionally, Naji Marshall and Aaron Nesmith were both assessed technical fouls following this play.

On replay it looked like Nesmith was going for the ball. He got a whole lot of arm with it, knocked Flagg off balance in the air and sent him down hard on the left shoulder. Naji Marshall went straight at Nesmith, the teams had to be pulled apart, and the officials handed out a flagrant 1 to Nesmith and a double technical to Nesmith and Marshall. Flagg walked to the locker room holding the shoulder.

Up to that point it was close to a perfect half for Dallas. Flagg had 14 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists in 17 minutes, and this came 2 nights after he dropped 32 in the opener, the highest-scoring game by a teenager in league history. The reigning Rookie of the Year is the whole show in Dallas, so there is no such thing as a small shoulder injury for him.

Marshall took his spot to start the third quarter. Nesmith was on the floor for the second half too, which went over great with the Mavs fans watching. A few minutes in, the team made the call.

Marc Stein

@TheSteinLine

The Mavericks say Cooper Flagg (left shoulder) will NOT return in the second half tonight at Indiana. Flagg did not start the second half after racking up 14 points, five rebounds, six assists and three blocks in helping Dallas build a 77-43 first-half lead at Indiana.

The official tag was left shoulder soreness, and it's the same shoulder he hurt as a rookie. With a 77-43 halftime lead there was zero reason to send him back out, and Dallas got away with it, though the second half got ugly. Indiana won the second half by a lot, Kyrie Irving fouled out, and the Mavs finished the game without their 2 best players.

Christian Clark

@christianpclark

Final: Mavericks 121, Pacers 105 Dusty May gets his first win as an NBA coach. Dallas played the final 4:23 without its two best players. Cooper Flagg never returned after his left shoulder injury, and Kyrie Irving fouled out. Nice games from Naji Marshall (15 points, 6 assists, 3 steals) and Zaccharie Risacher (11 points, 6 rebounds, 3 blocks) off the bench. Dallas (1-1) hosts San Antonio in its home opener tomorrow.

It still goes down as Dusty May's first NBA win, and Marshall, who started the whole fight, put up 15 points, 6 assists and 3 steals off the bench. Afterward May wouldn't put a timeline on Flagg. He said Flagg 'will be evaluated the next couple days' and that he didn't know whether imaging was coming. Then he got asked about Nesmith, whom he's known for years.

Mike Curtis

@MikeACurtis2

Asked Dusty May about Aaron Nesmith’s flagrant foul that led to Flagg’s left shoulder soreness. “Nesmith’s a great guy. Heck of a player. I’ve known him since he was in high school. An unfortunate play. Hopefully Coop’s fine, but obviously it’s something we wish wouldn’t have happened.”

The schedule doesn't help. It's a back-to-back, and Dallas plays its home opener Saturday night against Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs. 'Next couple days' does not sound like a guy who's playing in less than 24 hours. If he sits, it's Marshall and Irving against Wemby in front of a home crowd that bought tickets to see the kid. Watch the Mavs' injury report Saturday afternoon. That'll tell you whether this is a 1-game precaution or something bigger.