Wouldn't say I feel super strongly here but certainly going to watch Wemby vs. Flagg, so let's make it even more interesting. I'd probably have passed if the Spurs were healthy, but no De'Aaron Fox and Jeremy Sochan hurts and even no Kelly Olynyk, too, a bit. The loss of veteran Chris Paul might actually be felt on such a young team early on. Dallas stellar defender Anthony Davis can help neutralize Wembanyama. Flagg is listed as the Mavs' starting point guard, by the way, with no Kyrie Irving. Our model has Dallas by 6. And our Discord Community apparently is leaning Mavs. Not sure if that makes me feel better or worse :)

Too much hype surrounding a team is inevitable with prior success. The Dallas Mavericks went to the NBA Finals just two seasons ago, and somehow landed the top pick in the NBA Draft with Cooper Flagg. The veterans surrounding Flagg have won NBA titles in Klay Thompson and Anthony Davis, but in game one tonight I see the value with the San Antonio Spurs. San Antonio went undefeated in pre-season with a 5-0 record, and played competitively in both March meetings against Dallas, including a ten point victory. Grab the Spurs plus the points.

I love me some Cooper Flagg. Dallas is my pick to win the NBA championship next season once fully healthy. De'Aaron Fox being out hurts the Spurs too much tonight, so give me Dallas straight up against Victor Wembanyama & Co.

Key players Kyrie Irving and De'Aaron Fox are out, but there will still be plenty of star power when the Mavericks and No. 1 overall draft pick Cooper Flagg host Victor Wembanyama (No. 1 overall in 2023) and the Spurs. In a vote of SportsLine Discord members, 75 percent favored Dallas to cover. Discord member MisterMarkot said "if you look at the starting lineups alone, the Mavs have massive advantages outside of Wemby, who only had 17 last year with Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II slowing him down. Outside of Harrison Barnes, San Antonio is still extremely young going up against veterans like Klay Thompson, Anthony Davis, D'Angelo Russell." To join the Discord, click "Join Our Community" from the SportsLine homepage.