DALLAS (AP) — Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg was ruled out for the second half of a 118-109 loss to Denver on Wednesday night after the No. 1 pick sprained his left ankle in the first half Wednesday night.
Flagg was called for a foul while defending against Peyton Watson, and turned the ankle as he fell to the floor with 6:01 left in the second quarter. Flagg limped to the bench and continued to the locker room, but returned for the final 2:35 before the break.
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Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg walks on the court after briefly leaving to the locker room during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Denver Nuggets Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) shoots a basket against Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg (32) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg leaves the court and heads to the locker room during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Denver Nuggets Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray, right, goes up for a basket against Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
The 19-year-old didn't come of the locker room for the second half before the announcement that he was out for the game. Flagg injured the same ankle two nights earlier, leaving briefly to get it taped before returning and leading Dallas with 27 points in a 113-105 victory over Brooklyn.
“He stepped on someone’s foot,” coach Jason Kidd said. “Last game, he twisted his ankle, too. We decided to hold him (out) for the second half.”
Kidd said he didn't know if Flagg, who wasn't available to reporters after the game, or center Daniel Gafford would play the second game of a back-to-back against Utah on Thursday night. Gafford was ruled out during the second half against Denver with a right ankle sprain that has bothered him most of the season.
Flagg was playing his 40th game, three more than his only season as a Duke standout when he led the Blue Devils to the Final Four as The Associated Press men's player of the year.
Flagg missed just one game in the first 41 of the Mavericks, due to an illness in November. The Rookie of the Year contender is averaging 18.8 points and 6.3 rebounds.
Before Gafford exited, the Mavericks were already without their top two frontcourt players in 10-time All-Star Anthony Davis and young center Dereck Lively II. Davis is expected to be sidelined about six weeks with ligament damage in his left hand, and Lively is out for the season following foot surgery.
“This is a hard time for us,” Kidd said. “We have had a lot of injuries. … We have been hurt since day one of training camp. This is the norm. The character has been displayed in tough times of being down. But we keep fighting.”
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Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg walks on the court after briefly leaving to the locker room during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Denver Nuggets Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray (27) shoots a basket against Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg (32) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg leaves the court and heads to the locker room during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Denver Nuggets Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray, right, goes up for a basket against Dallas Mavericks forward Cooper Flagg during the first half of an NBA basketball game Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
NAKHON RATCHASIMA, Thailand (AP) — A new construction accident on a road near Thailand's capital, Bangkok, was reported on Thursday, just 24 hours after a construction crane fell on a moving passenger train in the country's northeast, killing at least 32 people.
There was no immediate official confirmation of deaths in Thursday’s accident, but the Facebook page of Fire & Rescue Thailand, which covers the activities of volunteer firefighters and rescue workers, said at least one person was killed.
The accident occurred at the site of an elevated road construction project.
Meanwhile, the search for survivors from Wednesday’s train accident in Nakhon Ratchasima province has ended, said provincial governor Anuphong Suksomnit. Officials said three passengers listed as missing were presumed to have gotten off the train earlier, but that was still being investigated.
Officials believed there had been 171 people aboard the train’s three carriages, which were being removed from the scene on Thursday.
The latest accident on the outskirts of Bangkok saw a construction crane collapse on the Rama 2 Road elevated expressway in Samut Sakhon province at around 9 a.m., according to the government's Public Relations Department, which added that two vehicles were trapped in the wreckage, which included massive metal girders.
Rescue operations were underway, the statement added.
The construction project, an extension of the Rama 2 Road expressway — a major artery leading from Bangkok — has become notorious in recent years for construction accidents, some of them fatal.
At the train accident scene in Nakhon Ratchasima, work to remove the wreckage continued Thursday, after search and rescue operations concluded Wednesday night. The accident saw a falling crane derail and crush parts of the train under it.
The authorities said the crane that fell was a launching gantry crane, a mobile piece of equipment often used in building elevated roadways.
Narongsak Promta, the provincial police chief of Nakhon Ratchasima, told reporters at the site that police are working to verify the status of all passengers to determine the status of the three people listed as missing.
He said police are still collecting evidence and interviewing relevant parties and have not yet pressed charges against any party.
South Korea's Foreign Ministry reported that one South Korean national, a man in his late 30s, was among the dead. The ministry is providing consular services to the bereaved family.
The two-stage high-speed rail project on which the accident occurred has a total investment cost of more than 520 billion baht ($16.8 billion) and is associated with an ambitious plan to connect China with Southeast Asia under Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative.
In August 2024, a railway tunnel on the planned route, also in Nakhon Ratchasima, collapsed, killing three workers.
Anan Phonimdaeng, acting governor of the State Railway of Thailand, said the project’s contractor is Italian-Thai Development, with a Chinese company responsible for design and construction supervision.
A statement posted on the website of the company, also known as Italthai, expressed condolences to the victims and said the company would take responsibility for paying compensation to the families of the dead and hospitalization expenses for the injured.
The rail accident sparked outrage because Italthai was also the co-lead contractor for the State Audit Building in Bangkok that collapsed during construction in March last year during a major earthquake.
About 100 people were killed in the collapse, which was the only major structure in Thailand to suffer such serious damage. Dozens of executives were indicted in connection with the disaster but none have yet been tried.
The involvement of Chinese companies in both projects has also drawn attention, as has Italthai and Chinese companies’ involvement in the construction of several expressway extensions in and around Bangkok where several accidents, some fatal, have occurred.
In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Wednesday the government was aware of the reports about the rail accident and had expressed condolences.
It was not immediately clear which companies were involved in Thursday's road construction accident.
Associated Press writers Wasamon Audjarint in Bangkok and Hyung-jin Kim in Seoul contributed to this report.
Forensic workers inspect the site of a train accident, a day after a construction crane fell into a passenger train in Nakhon Ratchasima province, Thailand, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
A cuddly toy lies on the ground at the site of a train accident, a day after a construction crane fell into a passenger train in Nakhon Ratchasima province, Thailand, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
A construction crane that collapsed on the Rama 2 Road elevated expressway in Samut Sakhon province, Thailand on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Arnun Chonmahatrakool)
A construction crane that collapsed on the Rama 2 Road elevated expressway in Samut Sakhon province, Thailand on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Arnun Chonmahatrakool)
A construction crane that collapsed on the Rama 2 Road elevated expressway in Samut Sakhon province, Thailand on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Arnun Chonmahatrakool)
