LeBron James has voiced his “love” for Cooper Flagg’s performances after the 19-year-old scored 45 points in the Dallas Mavericks’ 134-128 home win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday.

The Mavericks are 12th in the Western Conference but handed the third-placed Lakers a second straight defeat despite James scoring 30 in reply in the absence of the injured Luka Doncic.

“He looks like he loves the game,” James said of first overall draft pick Flagg. “He’s putting in the work.

“Cooper’s been in a zone over the last couple of games, but he’s also just been playing consistent basketball all year.”

Analysis: LeBron James on Cooper Flagg’s rise

James said he had tracked Flagg from the forward’s high school days in Maine to his college exploits with Duke before entering the NBA.

“I knew he was special from there,” said the four-time NBA Most Valuable Player. “He’s just getting better and better and better.

“I love what he’s doing; I love what he’s bringing to this franchise. It’s just great to put the ball in somebody’s hands so they can go through the rough patches.

“When you go through the rough patches, it allows you to grow at a rate faster than other players. And that’s what [late coach] Paul Silas, rest his soul, did for me [at the Cleveland Cavaliers] in my rookie year [in 2003].

“I basically started at point guard early on and he allowed me to make mistakes and play against tough defenses and things like that.

“I had to make the reads or whatever, so I see similarities in that… that’s what I was trying to fix. It’s great to see [Flagg go] from early in the season to where he is today, as a fan of him and a fan of the game.”

Cooper Flagg: LeBron ‘one of the greatest’

Flagg and James had been “showing respect” when they spoke on court after the game, the prodigy explained.

“They will have more of a season than us left and they’ll go into the play-offs,” said Flagg. “So good luck to them and and whoever they face.

“I was a little kid watching him go through his whole career, so, it’s really impressive, first of all, just to watch him and see him be able to do the things that he’s still able to do out there.

“It’s a dream come. These are the moments, these are the times like to be able to match up against somebody like that, with the career he’s had.

“He’s one of the greatest, so it’s incredible… I grew up watching and idolizing him.”

NBA results: Steph Curry ‘very grateful’ after Rockets vs Warriors

Elsewhere in the NBA, Kevin Durant scored a game-leading 31 points and found Alperen Sengun for the game-winning basket with 11.1 seconds remaining as the Houston Rockets beat the Golden State Warriors 117-116 at the Chase Center.

Stephen Curry contributed 29 points for the Warriors after missing 27 games with a right-knee injury.

“I felt good,” said Curry, who played for 26 minutes and felt he improved as his performance went on.

“There were some good nerves going into it. Coming off the bench, you’re trying to pace yourself physically and mentally.

“After all the work you put in in rehab to get through… I was very grateful, for sure.”

Here are the latest NBA results from the weekend of April 5, 2026.

NBA standings, playoffs bracket: How the picture looks

If the regular season had ended after the latest round of games, the Miami Heat would meet the Orlando Magic and the Toronto Raptors would encounter the Charlotte Hornets in play-in matches.

The Portland Trail Blazers would face the Golden State Warriors and the Phoenix Suns would also take on the LA Clippers in those games.

The confirmed first round play-off games would include the Lakers against the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Cleveland Cavaliers against the Atlanta Hawks, the Rockets against the Denver Nuggets and the New York Knicks against the Philadelphia 76ers.

You can find the latest play-off picture and standings on the NBA’s site.