No one expected the Dallas Mavericks to get the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft Lottery.
And when they did, the wheels started spinning. Could a veteran-laden team choose to trade away the selection that would become Duke's Cooper Flagg?
In the end, though, the Mavs did the right thing, and in the process, they were rewarded much more than they deserved for February's shocking Luka Doncic trade.
When Dallas dealt away their generational superstar for an underwhelming package led by Anthony Davis, a deal in the dead of night that no one saw coming, it looked like the kind of move that could doom the franchise.
A core of Kyrie Irving and AD isn't bad, of course, but the aging and injury-prone combo didn't feel anything like Doncic, the in-his-prime Slovenian wizard who had just led the Mavericks to the Finals in 2024.
MORE: Cooper Flagg's mom had the most legendary quote about his future
The Mavs likely would've made the playoffs if they kept Doncic, though, thus negating even the slimmest of odds of getting Flagg. Not that they were playing their own game of capture the Flagg, of course. A team outside the top-10 lottery odds rarely makes this ascension.
But there the Mavericks were, the last team remaining, the No. 1 pick in one of the best drafts in recent memory to have the top spot.
Much of the trade speculation was unfounded, of course. That's the nature of the modern NBA. Trade "rumors" fly around without any real sourcing.
But many believed there was a legitimate case to trade the rights to Flagg for an in-his-prime star, someone like a Jaylen Brown from the Celtics.
MORE: Duke legend Cooper Flagg has an incredible GPA
The Mavericks had quite the prerogative here. Just months after making a potentially fatal franchise error in dealing Doncic, what would they do with another generational talent having fallen into their lap?
In the end, they made the right decision.
Technically, time will tell whether that's true, but barring disaster, it has to be.
The Mavericks couldn't accelerate their timeline away from face-of-the-franchise superstars twice in four months.
Flagg is the best thing to happen to the Mavs since Doncic, who was the best thing to happen to the Mavs since Dirk Nowitzki.
He's coming off a season when he led Duke in points, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks. He does it all.
MORE: Walter Clayton Jr. has some things, but not everything, in common with Steph Curry
Shoot, he's even the youngest player in this draft class. He didn't turn 18 until midway through his freshman year with the Blue Devils.
Flagg is the future, but he's also the present. Rarely do rookies enter the NBA who can impact winning right away to the extent that Flagg will be able to.
The Mavericks' duty is to figure out how to fit players around Flagg. He's the franchise now, and no trade could've landed a player with the generational upside of this lanky superstar from Maine.
Every team in the league would've loved to have Flagg. But with a multi-month runway to consider a deal, the Mavericks held firm.
This time, they'd stick with the potential future Hall of Famer and see just how far he could take them. Flagg's ceiling, and the Mavs' ceiling with him, could almost make people forget that they traded Doncic away in the first place.
MORE: Ace Bailey is the NBA Draft's version of Shedeur Sanders