The best of them was French point guard Nolan Traore, who looked like a guy who has played against men before (he played professionally in France last year) and was comfortable, finishing with 13 points on 3-of-5 shooting and getting to the line six times. It was a promising start.

Cooper Flagg's summer league debut wasn't perfect. But there were flashes of greatness, and at this stage the Mavericks would be wise to let him fail.