Key Takeaways
- Shaquille O'Neal recently spoke to RG about Cooper Flagg's development with the Dallas Mavericks and the Houston Rockets trading for Kevin Durant.
- The Hall of Famer believes Flagg will be “just fine" in the hands of such a classy organization like the Mavs.
- O'Neal also gave his honest take on the Rockets competing for a championship with KD at the forefront.
Cooper Flagg playing for Mavs in Summer League (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
While Shaquille O'Neal is obviously known for his dominant NBA career with the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat, the 7-foot basketball legend has his roots in Texas.
The Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer settled in San Antonio, Texas, and attended high school in the city. He still has roots in the state to this day, recently opening up his sixth Combaq Court in Rockwall, Texas — just a half-hour drive from Dallas. The court is a part of Shaq's efforts — in collaboration with his Shaquille O'Neal Foundation and Boys & Girls Club — to rebuild healthy places for kids in underserved communities.
O'Neal believes the hometown team, the Dallas Mavericks, are set up well for the future with their No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg. Flagg made his debut with the Mavericks recently, appearing in two summer league games and showing his all-around versatility. The 6-foot-9 phenom averaged 20.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.5 steals, and 1.0 block per game in his two appearances before the Mavericks made the decision to sit and rest Flagg for the rest of summer league play.
"In the highlights, he looks phenomenal," says O'Neal in a one-on-one interview with RG speaking about Flagg. "You must realize he's an 18-year-old kid. You can't put too much pressure on him. From my experience, you get two years before people really start staying it's time to win, but I think he's way above that 18-year-old curve."
The benefit for Flagg is that he's being drafted into an organization that could very well emerge as one of the top teams in the conference this upcoming season. The Mavericks are only a year removed from advancing to the NBA Finals and feature former champions and veteran stars in Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, and Klay Thompson.
That's not even mentioning how stacked they are on the depth chart with guys like P.J. Washington, Daniel Gafford, Dereck Lively II, and D'Angelo Russell.
What that means is that Flagg won't have the pressure of being the No. 1 option — he might be the No. 4 offensive option — and he will have all of the time in the world to develop since he's flanked by a stacked supporting cast. You don't often see that from top overall draft picks.
"This fan base definitely is going to treat him well through the ups and downs, because we celebrate Dirk Nowitzki," says O'Neal of the Mavericks fan base. "But I remember Dirk when he first came in. He was not Dirk — he turned into Dirk. But the Dallas fans have always been great. Cooper Flagg is playing for a great organization, great town, great fan base. He'll be absolutely fine."
O’Neal Reacts to Rockets’ Durant Trade
The other team in Texas, the Houston Rockets, is coming off a surprise breakout season where they clinched the Western Conference's No. 2 seed. The Rockets were led by a young core featuring four stars under the age of 22 in Jalen Green, Alperen Sengun, Amen Thompson, and Jabari Smith Jr.
However, that youth and lack of experience ended up showing in the playoffs when they were eliminated by the Golden State Warriors — who entered the playoffs as a play-in team — in seven games in the first round.
The difference this time around is they now have a bona fide closer and one of the greatest scorers of all time in Kevin Durant. The Rockets acquired the former MVP and four-time scoring champion in a seven-team trade — the largest in NBA history — which should cement them as one of the top teams in the league.
O'Neal believes the Rockets are better equipped with the addition of the two-time NBA champion. Their two major departures in the trade were Green and Dillon Brooks, both of whom are now members of the Suns.
"Definitely got a closer, but they play with intensity, they play good defense," says O'Neal. "Should get them higher, higher towards the top. I know they let go Jalen Green, he carried them last year, but KD is a more consistent Jalen Green. Jalen Green was too up and down for them to get to the next level, but listen, if KD's healthy shooting the ball well, they can make some noise."
When asked if the addition of Durant — who has 170 games of playoff experience — should help them get deeper in the playoffs, O'Neal answers without hesitation.
"Yes," says O'Neal.
