Cooper Flagg and the Dallas Mavericks handed the Oklahoma City Thunder their first loss, running away with a lopsided win, 120-96, at American Airlines Center on Wednesday.
Flagg had 26 points, five rebounds, and eight assists, while PJ Washington added 18 points and nine rebounds. The Mavericks improved to 3-2, while the Thunder fell to 4-1.
Zaccharie Risacher stepped up off the bench, finishing with 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting and six rebounds in 29 minutes. In the postgame conference, Flagg heaped praise on Risacher.
“He’s brought a lot. Goes back to competing. I think he has a long way to go, and he has so much growth that he can show offensively with his shot-making, and he’s super versatile. I think he’s looked great for us,” said Flagg in the video posted by The Smoking Cuban’s Noah Weber.
“Impacting the game in so many different ways, and that’s what I tell him a lot of the time. I think we’re 15 to 20 points better with him just doing the little things. The shots will fall, and all of that, I don’t even care about it. But when he goes out there and competes at the highest level and how he can, he makes us so much better just with his versatility all over the court.”
Cooper Flagg on Zaccharie Risacher:
“He’s brought a lot. Goes back to that competing. I think he has a long way to go, and he has so much growth that he can show offensively with shot-making and he’s super versatile…Impacting the game in so many different ways, and that’s what… pic.twitter.com/MErOGKKDwW
— Noah Weber (@noahweber00) October 29, 2026
The Mavericks acquired Risacher in a three-team deal with the Thunder and the Atlanta Hawks in the offseason, hoping to unlock his full potential. The former No. 1 pick has yet to find his footing in the NBA, but getting a clear role with the Mavericks should bode well for him.
“He’s been huge for us so far, and we’re gonna need him to keep getting better and keep playing with the same fire,” added Flagg.
Risacher is averaging 9.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.8 steals, and 1.8 blocks in 29.8 minutes.
The Mavericks exercised his fourth-year option on Wednesday.
Dallas will host the Houston Rockets on Friday.
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