​Kyrie Irving made his return to the hardwood of the American Airlines Center after tearing his ACL in the arena 604 days prior.But although he remains one of the youngest players on the team, Cooper Flagg is the Mavs’ box-office attraction.The reigning Rookie of the Year led Dallas with 26 points, five rebounds, eight assists and no turnovers. Dallas, at 3-2 on the season, is now above .500 for the first time in Flagg’s career.Flagg played in his fourth-ever game alongside Irving after the veteran point guard missed the entire 2025-26 season. Irving is playing on a minutes restriction, but made the most of his time on the floor with 15 points and four assists.”He just makes it easy to play with him,” Flagg said about Irving recently, via ESPN. “Obviously, he’s one of the greats of our game. He’s an incredible talent, but I think that combined with his personality makes it easy to fit next to and play with him.”READ MORE:Mavs Explain Management Changes As CEO Rick Welts Announces RetirementThe Mavs outscored the Thunder by 25 points when Irving was on the court.Two-time defending league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 21 points, but for a second game in a row, Ajay Mitchell led the Thunder in scoring with 29 points. Mitchell posted a career-high of 30 in OKC’s win over Phoenix on Monday.Oklahoma City, perhaps in an emotional hangover, lost its first game of the season as four key contributors – Jalen Williams (ankle/leg), Chet Holmgren (knee), Cason Wallace (shoulder) and Alex Caruso (ankle) – were out with injuries.Irving gave MFFLs something to cheer about right away as he was a perfect 3-for-3 from 3-point range in the first quarter. Dallas shot 7 for 13 from the perimeter in the opening period to take a three-point lead into the second.The Mavs outscored the Thunder 21-12 to open the second quarter, with Marcus Sasser hitting a sidestep triple to give Dallas a lead of 12.A few minutes later, Oklahoma City rallied with Mitchell’s 3 trimming the deficit back to five. Dallas went with a small-ball lineup of Flagg and Washington as the primary post players for the final possession of the half, which ended with the former making two free throws for a 65-59 halftime lead.Flagg’s playmaking was on display in recording his first-career half with five assists and no turnovers. The teenage star was following up his 11-assist night in Monday’s win over Miami.Walter Clayton Jr. brought facilitation off the bench with five assists for Dallas. Six other Mavs joined Irving and Flagg in double-digit scoring.OKC outscored Dallas 26-14 in the paint in the first half, but the Mavs built their edge off of 11 3-pointers to the Thunder’s three.READ MORE:Is Walter Clayton Jr. Playing Himself Into a Larger Role Under Dusty May?Center Daniel Gafford accounted for one of those makes for Dallas. Gafford connected on his first regular-season 3-pointer on his first attempt of the season. Coming into his eighth season with just one 3-point attempt, the big man’s newfoun