Few Dallas Mavericks notes from the past week: - Cooper Flagg is still balancing how to grow into a leader while still learning from others. He’s juggling trying to be the person teammates go to for answers while still seeking answers himself. - The vibes are high around the Mavs. The squad really like each other, and it shows. The energy is great and they enjoy spending time together. You can really feel it. - The ball is going to be in Flagg’s hands more than anyone, even with Kyrie Irving returning. Flagg is still going to be the primary initiator and Kyrie will play a secondary role. They’ll also be staggered. - Internally, the Mavs are really high on Sergio De Larrea. They think he’s a big time player with similar ilk to Cooper on a competitive sense. He’ll be in the rotation. - Dusty is very much aware of the lack of success college coaches have had when transitioning to an NBA head coach. He said to me he’s been picking the brain of Brad Stevens consistently since landing the job. He will also lean on Willie Green here. - The team is excited about the offense with Kyrie’s return. They feel as those it really opens up what they can do and relieves stress on Flagg as a ball handler. - Both Kyrie and Cooper are very excited to share the floor together and look forward to what they can do using each other’s gifts to tilt the defense. - Dwight Powell is still very trusted. He played a lot of minutes at the 5 and feels like a steady contributor especially when Derek Lively is out. - Speaking of Lively, his situation remains a little peculiar. The team declined to give any real updates besides that he’s moving a little better and working towards returning. Nothing more than that. He wasn’t doing any notable work at practices or pregame that gave any indication leaps are being made on his health. It feels like a very slow burn to him returning. - The vets on the team feel like the Mavs are being a little underrated around the league, and if they’re healthy they’re going to surprise a lot of people. - The way Kyrie looks physically, you wouldn’t have known he’s been away from the game for so long. He is also looking to prove that he can still play at a really high level post this injury. - Kyrie still wants to play for the Australian national team, and he’ll visit Melbourne after this upcoming season. - It is quite obvious that the future of the Mavs is building around Flagg. Everyone understands and speaks into how special Kyrie is and what he’ll bring to the table, but at a macro level there is an understanding what the direction is. - Max Christie reiterated many times that he’ll do whatever the team asks of him, and if his role expands he’s ready for that too. - They are still working through what Zaccharie Risacher can bring to this team. He is still very much getting acclimated, and he remains incredibly optimistic about how he can help. The general feel is that they’ll ask him to play within himself, play to his strengths and not stretch what he’s capable of. This is still very much a work in progress even with the optimism. - Tarik Biberovic can shoot the heck out of the ball. - Moussa Cisse is ways away from being a trusted rotation piece. There was a lot of learning occurring on the fly. - Morez Johnson will play both the 4 and the 5 and they’ll see where he’s most effective. He’s still learning what is expected from him in Year 1 but they’re excited about what he can grow into. - There will still be a place for Naji Marshall offensive reps. - Despite not suiting up, Santi Aldama was in good spirits with the team. - PJ Washington remains key to what they want to do this season on the wings, it’s a priority to keep him healthy.