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Michael C. Wright
LAS VEGAS — The highest two picks of the 2025 NBA draft confronted off Saturday within the NBA summer season league and flashed an attractive view of what may be on the horizon subsequent season in the course of the San Antonio Spurs‘ 76-69 win over the Dallas Mavericks.
No. 1 choose Cooper Flagg racked up a game-high 31 factors on 10-of-21 taking pictures on a day that additionally featured a number of highlight-reel dunks. No. 2 choice Dylan Harper scored 16 factors in simply 20 minutes in his summer season league debut after lacking all of San Antonio’s earlier matchups resulting from a minor groin damage.
“[There’s] not a greater time to return again [than] in a recreation like this and a crowd as electrifying as this,” Harper mentioned. “He had a superb recreation. I had a superb recreation. We form of simply confirmed the NBA world what we’re about.”
Performing earlier than a packed home at Thomas & Mack Middle that included present gamers and former NBA stars, in addition to celebrities reminiscent of comic Cedric the Entertainer and actor Jason Sudeikis, Harper poured within the first factors of the sport 45 seconds into the motion on a drive to the basket. Each Flagg and Harper began sluggish, every hitting just one of 4 within the first quarter as San Antonio constructed a 21-11 lead.
However the crowd rose to its ft as soon as the highest picks matched up one-on-one with 4.1 seconds left within the first quarter. Harper missed a 24-foot stepback jumper on the finish of that sequence with Flagg defending.
Offensively, Flagg struggled at instances when guarded by Spurs wing Carter Bryant (the No. 14 choose of the 2025 NBA draft), who’s broadly projected to grow to be certainly one of San Antonio’s prime defensive stoppers. Flagg nonetheless managed to earn a number of journeys to the foul line, the place he shot 8 of 13.
“I feel it is a new surroundings, new setting,” Flagg mentioned. “They need to see me be aggressive and do this kind of stuff. I feel I did that so much higher at the moment, simply attending to the road, getting fouled, and that helped me to get snug and get settled in early. Nonetheless missed a bunch of free throws. I do know my mother in all probability wasn’t very proud of that.”
Flagg would produce his most memorable sequence during the last 30.3 seconds of the third quarter. Flagg beat full-court strain for a driving layup to tug Dallas to inside 10 factors (57-47). Then, he drove for a thunderous dunk over San Antonio’s Riley Minix, earlier than swatting away Minix’s halfcourt heave on the buzzer.
“He simply continues to make the appropriate performs,” Mavericks summer season league coach Josh Broghamer mentioned. “Whether or not it is a drive by [on] the man pressuring him or we had been utilizing him a little bit bit extra as a curler and off the ball a few instances simply to get him some simpler catches so he wasn’t working so laborious to deliver the ball up the ground, he simply continues to make the appropriate performs, which is all the time nice to see.”
One in all Harper’s most eye-popping moments got here with 1:04 left within the second quarter, when he swooped in for a high-flying block on the basket on Ryan Nembhard. The play jolted Spurs teammates Victor Wembanyama and Keldon Johnson from their courtside seats because the Thomas & Mack Middle crowd roared.
“[Harper] was nice, and also you felt his impression,” Spurs summer season league coach Mike Noyes mentioned. “The stints had been a little bit bit quick he would say. He hasn’t performed a recreation in a very long time. So, we tried to handle that correctly. When he was on the market, he was enjoying laborious, making the appropriate play.”
Harper concluded the second quarter with an and-1 end on a 10-foot floater with Flagg guarding. Harper linked on the following free throw to offer San Antonio a 33-32 lead at intermission.
Harper completed with 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and a block, whereas Flagg logged 4 rebounds, an help and a block.
“We’ll play them so much this 12 months,” Harper mentioned of Flagg and the Mavericks. “So, the long run battles are going to be nice. One factor that we have each acquired: We’re simply rivals. We’ll exit and compete.”