Mavericks Notes: Flagg, Tatum, Losing Streak, Kidd, Stars Dispute

Maine native Cooper Flagg‘s return to the Northeast was overshadowed by the season debut of the Celtics’ Jayson Tatum on Friday.

Flagg didn’t mind. He considers Tatum his idol and was thrilled to play against him.

“It’s incredible,” Flagg told Christian Clark of The Athletic. “There are so many levels to it. (Tatum) is someone I idolized growing up. Watched him go through levels and ranks. Watched him at Duke. Kind of followed in his footsteps. … It’s really special just for me to have this experience tonight.”

Flagg fought left foot soreness to score 16 points. Afterward, Tatum gave him some advice.

“He just told me to keep going,” Flagg said. “He’s been a mentor for me through my journey from Duke to now. Someone I’ve been able to talk to and get advice from. I told him the same. I told him it’s incredible what he’s able to do and how quickly he was able to come back.”

Here’s more on the Mavericks:

• They continue to sink down the standings in the hopes of landing another high lottery pick. They’ve lost six straight and 16 of their last 18 in the aftermath of their 20-point loss in Boston. “I just think we weren’t organized,” Flagg said. “Part of it is us still learning each other. And part of it was I wasn’t good enough.”
• Coach Jason Kidd anticipated he would get criticized for turning Flagg into the team’s de facto point guard, he told Marc J. Spears of Andscape. “If you’re challenging or trying to change or help someone become successful, there are going to be critics. You need critics because critics are not always right. That’s just the nature of the beast,” Kidd said. “But it’s basketball. There’s no more positions. What’s your skill set? Can you handle it? If you can handle it, you can play. KD [Kevin Durant] got the ball early in his career. Was [then-Seattle SuperSonics head coach] P. J. Carlesimo criticized for it? Yeah? Maybe. You have to go back and look, but it worked out.”
• There’s animosity between the Mavericks franchise and the NHL Stars and it spilled into the courtroom on Friday. According to Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News, the Mavs are seeking injunctive relief and finality on a breach of contract dispute with the Stars. The Mavs originally filed the lawsuit in October and the Stars counter-sued the next day. The Mavericks allege the Stars breached a clause in both teams’ 1998 franchise agreement with the city of Dallas, prior to American Airlines Center’s 2001 opening. The clause requires the teams’ corporate headquarters to be within Dallas city limits. The Stars have had their headquarters and training facility in Frisco since 2003.