Teenager ensures historic NBA evening

Cooper Flag! The Dallas Mavericks rookie was the Association’s star attraction on Good Friday, which was otherwise marked by numerous blowouts.

Before we start: Our recap is best filled with special achievements and incidents. There was also something of this variety on Friday.

However, five of the nine games ended with a difference of over 30 points. Added to this is the 129:108 victory of the Charlotte Hornets over the Indiana Pacers. The league has already announced consequences regarding tanking.

Results like Friday’s show that these cannot come into force quickly enough and the regular season cannot be over quickly enough for the teams in the bottom of the table.

However, one man single-handedly proved why this strategy is worth pursuing. And his name is Cooper Flagg!

MVP and rookie of the night: Flagg crowns rookie season

51 points! Fifty-one points! Yes, you read that right. The number 1 pick entered the history books as the first teenager ever and at the same time as the youngest player in the history of the league with a 50-ball.

Flagg is 19 years and 103 days old and showed, six games before the end of his fabulous rookie season, why it can be worthwhile to increase his chances in the draft lottery for someone of caliber like him.

And yet it wasn’t enough for a home win in the 127:138 win against the Orlando Magic. And that despite 24 points in the final quarter, which Dallas won 35:27, but was unable to overcome a 30-point deficit.

Flagg was the only Mavs starter to play at least 30 minutes against the Magic. It was different for the guests, where all starters except Franz Wagner (17 minutes, 18 points) jumped over this hurdle.

Flagg hit 19/30 from the field, 6 of his 9 three-pointers, was perfect on 7 attempts at the free throw line and also grabbed 6 rebounds. 3 assists (1 turnover), 3 steals and 1 block should not go unmentioned at this point.

Bright spot of the night: 76ers and Timberwolves are serious

At the start of the weekend there was at least a location where meaningful basketball was played. Because in Philadelphia the 76ers met the Minnesota Timberwolves: two teams that are still in the race for their starting position for the playoffs.

In addition, the hosts were able to make full use of the Xfinity Mobile Arena again. Because their star trio in Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and Paul George was back on the floor.

Embiid’s double-double of 19 points and 13 rebounds, 23 points from George and 21 and 8 dimes (3 turnovers) from Maxey gave the Sixers an immensely important 115:103 home win.

Anthony Edwards was also able to get involved again with the guests from the Twin Cities after recovering from illness, but was less influential than usual with only 8 points. His yield from the field was 3/15, none of his 7 threes found their target. An evening to forget.

Role-player romance: Anunoby with a career high

OG Anunoby is certainly more than a classic role player for the New York Knicks; he falls more into the category of a high-class helper. In the Knicks’ never-threatened 136:96 home win against the Chicago Bulls, he demonstrated his class with a career high.

The British forward hit 7 of his 10 three-pointers, which meant he finished with 31 points and equaled his previous record for three-pointers made. However, he has not been as accurate as he was on Friday before.

When he gave the Utah Jazz 7 triples last season, Anunoby needed 12 attempts. In 2023 – then still wearing the Toronto Raptors jersey – he hit 7 of his 13 three-pointers against the San Antonio Spurs.

Dance performance of the night: Playing ball with Siakam

The Charlotte Hornets had no trouble at all against the visiting Indiana Pacers. The red-hot Hornets sent last season’s battered finalists home 129:108. The home team swept past the Pacers, especially in the first quarter (38:21).

The engine behind it? LaMelo Ball! The point guard had played three of his nine dimes after just six minutes. Towards the end of the first half, he gave the Pacers his most impressive two points of the evening by asking Pascal Siakam to dance.

With the point guard’s typical swagger, he sent Siakam into space and then sank a shallow stepback three-pointer.

To save Siakam’s honor, however, it should be said that the Pacers star was still the one who resisted the defeat the most. With 30 points (13/24 FG) he was the guests’ biggest asset.

The home win was particularly gratifying for the Hornets because it ended a ten-year lull: Four games before the end of the regular season, the Hornets (42-36) can no longer take away a positive result. This was last achieved in the 2025/16 season, when the franchise was in the playoffs for the last time.

Dominance of the night: Celtics dupe the Bucks

The Boston Celtics didn’t hand the Milwaukee Bucks the biggest defeat of the day on Friday, but they did reveal the biggest class difference in all of the games.

Because with the score at 105:76 for the Celtics after three quarters, the game was essentially already over. In the entire final quarter, the guests were without Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, who had set off their next offensive fireworks display up to that point.

In the end, Tatum was just one assist short of a triple-double. His statline was 23 points (8/16 FG), 11 rebounds and 9 assists (2 turnovers). Jaylen Brown was the game’s top scorer with 26 points (7/17 FG). He added 4 assists (2 turnovers), 3 rebounds and 2 steals.

However, it wasn’t just the two stars who were responsible for the Celtics’ dominance, but also the rest of the team. Boston got off to a dream start, just like it did recently in Miami. 8 of the first 9 three-pointers flew through the trap. In the end, the guests were 17/37 (46 percent) from downtown.

From the field, the 2024 champions were absolutely superior. 56 percent field goals were compared to just 42 percent for the Bucks, who once again competed without Giannis Antetokounmpo.

The duel on the boards clearly went to the favorites. With 48:30, the Celtics also showed how it works in this category. In addition to the threat from distance, Boston also felt at home in the Bucks’ zone. 56 points came from close proximity to the ring, while the hosts were only able to score 22 points in the restricted area.

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