INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — A jarring flagrant foul knocked Cooper Flagg awkwardly to the floor and eventually out of the game Friday night.
Now it's unclear whether the Dallas star will miss any more time.
Last season's NBA Rookie of the Year did not play in the second half of Dallas' 121-105 victory Friday night over the Indiana Pacers after landing hard on his left shoulder after Aaron Nesmith tried to block his shot from behind to prevent a breakaway dunk.
Instead, Flagg landed hard on his shoulder.
“Cooper has left shoulder soreness, he'll be evaluated in the next couple of days,” Mavericks coach Dusty May said before addressing whether Flagg needed an MRI. “I really don't know. I saw him in the locker room, he's in good spirits. We'll know in the next couple days what's next.”
Flagg did not speak to reporters following the game.
He was off to a fast start in his second pro season. Two days after scoring 32 points to become the highest scoring teenager in a season opener in league history, Flagg was on pace for his first triple double of the season. He finished with 14 points, five rebounds and six assists in 17 minutes.
But it was how he left that had everyone talking and scuffling as Mavericks players came to the defense of their hurting teammate.
Forward Naji Marshall confronted Nesmith under the basket, drawing players from both teams into a brief fray. After a replay review, the refs assessed double technical fouls to Nesmith and Marshall. Flagg then made 1 of 2 free throws and continued to rub his shoulder as he walked toward the locker room.
Two Mavericks players also appeared to leave the bench though May said he thought both went to check on Flagg, perhaps avoiding any disciplinary action from the league.
“Look, Nesmith is a great guy, a heck of a player. I've known him since he was in high school," said May, who reached two NCAA Final Fours and won last year's national championship just a few blocks away from Gainbridge Fieldhouse. “Obviously, an unfortunate play. Hopefully, Coop's fine.”
Another brief scuffle broke out between the teams near midcourt in the second half though it led to technicals or flagrant fouls. Pacers coach Rick Carlisle noted that Indiana has now played two games that have resulted in multiple scuffles.
See AP’s full NBA coverage here
Players from the Dallas Mavericks and the Indiana Pacers scuffle after a hard foul during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Friday, Oct. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/AJ Mast)
LONDON (AP) — Prince Harry’s wife, Meghan, said Friday she was “deeply distressed” by allegations that a collection of child sexual abuse images had been found at her father’s former home. She also revealed that a letter containing “troubling allegations” about him had been sent to London police in 2018.
Meghan, also known as the Duchess of Sussex, issued the statement after The Sun, a British tabloid newspaper, reported that her brother found the images while clearing out the home of their father, Thomas Markle Sr., in the Philippines.
“I am deeply distressed at the news that has come to light in the last 24 hours, and my thoughts are with any children who may have been harmed,’’ Meghan said in a statement.
She also addressed the letter sent to the Metropolitan Police Service’s Royal and Specialist Protection unit, which later shared its contents with her.
“It made troubling and disturbing allegations against my father and I was given assurances that these were being investigated. I hope it can now be understood that, despite certain media publications’ distortion over the years, any distance from my father and my choice to not allow him to have contact with our children was for one reason: to protect them.”
Meghan, an American citizen who starred in the U.S. television drama “Suits,” married Harry at Windsor Castle in 2018. They have two children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
Thomas Markle Sr., a retired television lighting and photography director, did not attend the wedding, prompting extensive coverage in the British media of Meghan’s estrangement from her father. While some reports suggested she had shunned him in favor of her new royal status, Meghan said her decision to distance herself was intended to protect her children.
“Although the breadth of what has now been uncovered is more sickening than one could ever imagine, my sincerest hope is that justice will be fully served and that the priority remains the safety and protection of innocent children,” Meghan said in her statement.
Thomas Markle Sr. was living in the Philippines earlier this year when he suffered a stroke and had his left leg amputated. That forced him to return to the U.S.
The Sun reported that Thomas Markle Jr. recently found “hundreds, if not thousands” of child sex abuse images in boxes at his father’s former home in the Philippine city of Cebu when he was clearing out the property.
Markle Jr. told the newspaper that he reported the images to police in the Philippines and contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the U.S.
“I have supported, cared for him and helped him for years — but that stops now,” Markle Jr. told The Sun. “I won’t speak to my father ever again unless I’m called to give evidence against him.”
In the Philippines, the director of the National Bureau of Investigation, Melvin Matibag, told The Associated Press that the FBI has sought its assistance in looking into the allegations of Markle Jr. against his father.
The FBI office in Manila has transmitted a letter from Markle Jr. to a number of Philippine law enforcement agencies, including the NBI’s Anti-Violence Against Women and Children Division, where he detailed his alleged discovery of materials “which appear to depict children/minors in sexually explicit or exploitative circumstances,” Matibag said.
The son indicated that he was ready to surrender the alleged lewd materials which he found, and said in an affidavit that his father “is already in an assisted living facility in Florida, USA,” Matibag said, without elaborating or saying if the suspected materials have been turned over to Philippine authorities.
The FBI requested that it be notified by Philippine authorities “once any of the victims are identified,” Matibag said.
Philippine Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla told the AP separately that the national police, which he helps oversee, was also investigating the allegations by Markle Jr. against his father, without elaborating.
In comments to the Daily Mail, the 82-year-old Markle denied the allegations.
“I’m shocked, I’m hurt and I’m very upset that my son is making these accusations against me,″ he was quoted by the Daily Mail as saying. “I could never do what I’m being accused of. It’s the worst thing anyone could accuse me of.”
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, attends the inauguration of "The Lost Screen Memorial" exhibition for the unveiling of a temporary memorial to protect children from online abuse, in Geneva, Switzerland, on May 17, 2026. (Cyril Zingaro/Keystone via AP, File)
FILE- Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, meets volunteer first responders from the Bondi Surf Bathers' Life Saving Club during a visit to Bondi Beach, Australia, on April 17, 2026. (Jonathan Brady/Pool Photo via AP, File)
Britain's Prince Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex visit Epic Partners in Nottingham, England, Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026. (Joe Giddens/Pool Photo via AP)
