At The Venetian Arena in Macao on Sunday, Dallas Mavericks teammates Kyrie Irving and Cooper Flagg shared the court together for the first time, combining in a 132-115 victory over the Houston Rockets. Irving, returning from a left knee ACL tear sustained on March 3, 2025, scored 17 points in his first appearance back.

Flagg contributed 14 points, seven assists, and four rebounds across 25 minutes and seven seconds of play, converting seven of his eight free-throw attempts. On Friday, Dallas had absorbed a 135-117 defeat at Houston, with Irving sitting out that game after scoring 19 points.

Dallas selected Flagg with the first overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, and on April 29 he received the 2025-26 Rookie of the Year award. He turns 20 in December. Irving's rehabilitation kept him off the court for the entirety of Flagg's first professional season.

Irving's NBA career has included stints alongside LeBron James in Cleveland and Kevin Durant in Brooklyn. When asked to draw comparisons between Flagg and either of those players, Irving declined, saying any comparison he offered would be taken out of context and circulated widely, while adding that his regard for both James and Durant remains high and that each has established a place in basketball history that belongs to him individually.

Irving said he saw in Flagg the kind of drive found in players who step up at a young age — capable of fitting into a strong roster while also producing numbers — and expressed appreciation for Flagg's ability to contribute on both ends of the floor. Irving added that he valued watching the younger player find his voice heading into a second NBA season, noting that a Rookie of the Year award carries its own pressures — ones Irving said he intended to help Flagg manage.

Irving was himself the first overall pick in the 2011 draft, also out of Duke, the same university where Flagg spent one season before Dallas selected him. Irving reflected on his opening seasons in Cleveland, describing years marked by losing and a roster he felt lacked the components needed to compete, and pointing to the absence of experienced guidance as something he had needed at the time. He noted that the roster at that point was composed largely of players who had not yet accumulated many years of experience.

Irving drew on memories of teams he felt had the pieces for deep postseason runs that ultimately fell short before turning his attention to Flagg, observing that the young player was already putting his full range of skills on display with room to develop further. Houston Rockets coach Ime Udoka, speaking after the final horn, told reporters that Flagg had put together a performance pointing toward a promising future.

Entering his 16th NBA season under new head coach Dusty May, Irving told reporters that the Dallas roster had collectively decided to set aside outside projections. The veteran guard described a group whose focus stays on internal benchmarks — quality play, consistent effort, and shared accountability — while also pointing to an off-court chemistry that has held up through the early stretch of the season. Irving noted that the team's chemistry appeared strong to outside observers, adding that no significant tests had yet come the group's way and that the players were finding satisfaction in the process.

Irving and Flagg spent time together off the court. Irving described a roster in which players hold one another accountable during practice, draw on teammates for guidance, and include multiple members with something to prove beyond any single individual. A player on the roster expressed eagerness to compete alongside Flagg as one contributor within a broader unit.

Dallas converted 41 field goals into 28 assists on Sunday. Flagg led the team with seven assists, while Irving contributed three. In a postgame comment, Irving said a roster still finding its rhythm — one where the ball moves freely rather than staying in any single player's hands — was preferable to an offense built around him or Flagg alone, and that the group continues to learn from one another.

Irving acknowledged the squad's willingness to travel to Macao and make the trip while the season had yet to find its footing. May noted after the game that teammates occasionally pause to watch Irving rather than continuing their runs toward open space, which can limit the passing lanes available to him. May also said the team's lineup combinations, player positioning, and tactical approaches remain a work in progress when the full roster is available together.

The Mavericks are scheduled to host the New Orleans Pelicans at American Airlines Center on Wednesday, with tip-off set for 7 p.m. CT.