When the Dallas Mavericks won the draft lottery over the summer, they secured one of the most hyped prospects in the past decade in Cooper Flagg. As a versatile wing who can do just about everything on the floor, he is viewed as the cornerstone piece who will lead the franchise in the post-Luka Doncic era. Flagg has lived up to the hype thus far, but there is still one key area of development in his game.
Flagg has put up impressive numbers since entering the NBA, currently averaging just under 19 points per game as a rookie. However, the Mavs’ forward has struggled from beyond the arc. Flagg is shooting around four three-pointers a game, but is only converting 28.3% of them. This is a significant drop off from his efficiency in college (38.5%), but one key figure of the franchise isn’t worried.
During the pregame show for Amazon Prime ahead of Dallas’ latest matchup with the Golden State Warriors, Dirk Nowitzki chimed in on Flagg’s shooting. The Hall of Fame forward brought up his own struggles to start his career, stating that it is far from a cause for concern.
“Nobody here in Dallas is worried about his three ball,” Nowitzki said of Flagg. “My rookie season I shot 29% from three and it ended up being okay. So we’re not worried about Cooper’s three ball.”
Dirk Nowitzki on Cooper Flagg: “My rookie season, I shot 29% from three and it ended up being okay. We’re not worried about Cooper’s three ball.” pic.twitter.com/1rVoLlQx73
— NBA on Prime (@NBAonPrime) January 23, 2026
As he continues to get more comfortable with the NBA game, Flagg has steadily improved his shooting as well. While posting an eye-opening 23.5 PPG in December, he also shot 33% from beyond the arc. That number is still below league average, but his effectiveness as an outside threat is trending in the right direction.
With his combination of size and athleticism, Flagg is at his best when getting downhill and attacking the rim. That said, he’ll need to be a viable threat from outside so defenses can’t sag off him and make life harder getting to the paint.
As Nowitzki stated, the Mavericks have no reason to feel panicked about Flagg’s shooting. Only halfway through his first year in the league, he has time to refine this area of his offensive arsenal.
