Mavericks exercise third-year option on Cooper Flagg

The Mavericks have exercised their rookie scale team option on Cooper Flagg for the 2027/28 season, the team announced Saturday. The move locks in Flagg’s $15.2 million salary for 2027/28. He will earn about $14.5 million this season, and Dallas faces a decision on his $19.2 million option for 2028/29 a year from now.

The call was a formality after the No. 1 overall pick was named the NBA’s Rookie of the Year last season at age 19. Flagg averaged 21.0 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.5 assists in 33.5 minutes per game while shooting 46.8% from the field across 70 outings, all starts.

Notably, the announcement made no mention of Zaccharie Risacher, the first overall pick in 2024, whose contract includes a $17.4 million rookie scale team option for 2027/28. Teams typically announce rookie scale option decisions together, and Dallas has until November 2 to make a final call on Risacher — so his omission does not necessarily mean the option won’t be picked up. The former Hawk started all four of the Mavericks’ preseason games, averaging 12.2 points and 5.0 rebounds in 24.2 minutes.