51, 45, And Counting: Cooper Flagg Rewrites NBA History; Joins Wilt, MJ In Elite List

Last Updated:April 06, 2026, 23:45 IST

Cooper Flagg drops 45 after a 51-point game, becoming the first teen with a 50-point outing and posting the best rookie scoring run since Wilt Chamberlain.

There’s no slowing down Cooper Flagg right now. And even LeBron James got a front-row seat last night.

The 19-year-old rookie dropped 45 points to lead the Dallas Mavericks to a 134-128 win over the Los Angeles Lakers, just two days after exploding for 51.

Historic Company

That back-to-back scoring burst — 96 points across two games — is the highest by a rookie since Wilt Chamberlain in 1960.

Flagg also became the first rookie since Allen Iverson (1996-97) to post consecutive 40-point games, and the first since Walt Bellamy in 1962 to notch back-to-back 45-point outings.

And it doesn’t stop there.

With three 45-point games already this season, Flagg now has the most by a rookie since Michael Jordan’s iconic 1984-85 campaign.

Torching The Lakers

Against a depleted Lakers side, Flagg was everywhere: adding nine assists and eight rebounds to his 45-point masterclass.

Meanwhile, LeBron did all he could, finishing with 30 points and 15 assists, but it wasn’t enough as the Lakers continue to navigate life without Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.

The win also snapped Dallas’ brutal 14-game home losing streak, their longest in over three decades.

The Night It All Started

Flagg’s historic run began just days earlier in a loss to the Orlando Magic, where he dropped 51 points.

That performance made him the youngest player in NBA history to score 50+ points (19 years, 103 days), and the first teenager ever to do so.

He also joined an elite group of rookies to hit the milestone, alongside legends like Wilt, Kareem, and Iverson — but with one key difference: none of them did it as teenagers.

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