Cooper Flagg Returns, Rookie Race Heats Up

0:00From the Daily News Now Network, this is NBA News Today. Subscribe to keep up with every headline, every game. The Dallas Mavericks are grinding through a tough nine-game road trip that stretches across multiple weeks. They'll squeeze in just one home game next week before hitting the road again. The big news is, star rookie Cooper Flag is set to return tonight against the Orlando Magic after missing eight straight games with a mid-foot sprain. Flag also set out the Rising Stars challenge during all-star weekend, but he got upgraded to questionable earlier this week. Coach Jason Kidd confirmed in his pre-game talk that Flag is a true game time decision with optimism around playing. They'll limit him to between 20 and 25 minutes tonight, and they're hopeful he'll suit up tomorrow against the Boston Celtics, which is the closest stop to his family in Maine. While Flag was sidelined, his former Duke Rue May Conn Wepel jumped ahead as the favorite for rookie of the year. Flag led the race most of the season, highlighted by his 49-point explosion against to New

1:02Wepel, and the Charlotte Hornets back in January. New Wepel grabbed the lead by setting the rookie record for three pointers in a season, helping the Hornets climb the Eastern Conference standings. Despite some recent bumps, meanwhile, tonight's matchup with the Magic should be intriguing. Orlando has underperformed this year amid injuries to key players like Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero, falling short of expectations even when, healthy. Appreciation to our sponsor for backing this episode. If earbuds fall out when you sleep, this is for you, a pillow with built-in sound, S-O-L-I, solelypillow.com.