Mavericks just killed the most controversial Cooper Flagg rumor once and for all

Ever since May 12, the night that the Dallas Mavericks won the NBA Draft Lottery despite only having a 1.8 percent chance of doing so, fans have speculated what the team would do with the first pick. While the overwhelming majority of Mavericks fans believed the team would draft Cooper Flagg, there were some fans who feared that Nico Harrison might explore the trade market for the first pick (Flagg) and trade him for an established superstar player to better fit his win-now plan.

Most of this fear was abolished a few days after the lottery, when it was reported that the Mavericks plan to draft Flagg and wouldn't explore trade opportunities for the pick, but even after these reports, there was still some healthy fear within the fan base that Dallas could end up trading the pick. Mavericks fans were still scarred from the Luka Doncic trade from a few months prior, and they weren't going to believe that Flagg was going to be a Maverick until they saw it with their own eyes on draft night.

The Mavericks have done whatever they can to instill some confidence into the fan base that they'll be keeping the No. 1 pick in the draft and selecting Flagg over the last few weeks, as they published a unique video series focused on drafting Flagg and even Jason Kidd talking about Flagg in multiple media appearances, and they just put the cherry on top by announcing a draft party on the evening of the draft on June 25.

Mavericks' Cooper Flagg plan leaves no doubt anymore

On June 25, the Mavericks are hosting a draft party at the American Airlines Center to celebrate them having the first overall pick for the second time in franchise history, and the lineup of Mavericks legends attending this event is stacked. Dallas is going all out to make this night as special as possible for fans, and from everything that is being planned, it sounds like it is going to be a can't-miss event.

According to the Mavs' press release, Rolando Blackman, Nick Van Exel, Josh Howard, and Mark Aguirre will all be in attendance, and there will be "more surprise guests" that will check in throughout the night.

One of the most high-profile guests of the night is Dallas Wings No. 1 overall pick Paige Bueckers, joining Aguirre as another former No. 1 pick who will be in the building. Dallas going through all of these theatrics and planning an entire draft party at the arena is the perfect way to kick off the Cooper Flagg era, and with all of this planning, there is no shot that they trade this pick now.

On top of the planning and having thousands of Mavericks fans in the house to celebrate the new era, having Bueckers and Aguirre in attendance isn't by coincidence either. Both players were the first overall picks in their respective draft classes, and it wouldn't make sense for them to be in attendance if Dallas planned on trading the pick.

Along with the 2025 Mavs Watch Party that will be hosted at the arena, the Mavericks also leaked their plans to draft Flagg on the team website on Friday, as a page could be seen welcoming him to Dallas.

While teams around the league with later picks likely make graphics for multiple players, Dallas has the first overall selection, and plainly, the Mavericks' only option for this pick is Flagg.

Flagg will take his official visit to Dallas next week, and that will be his only visit in the entire pre-draft process. The Mavericks also don't plan on bringing in any other top prospects for workouts, showing their dedication to Flagg and their plan to pick him first overall.

Mavericks fans who have questioned if Dallas will pick Flagg or not can now rest easy, as all signs are pointing to him becoming a Maverick in less than two weeks. Trading Flagg would have been one of the most controversial and dangerous moves the Mavs could have possibly made, and it doesn't seem like that is within the cards with 12 days to go until the big day.