Mavericks’ Cooper Flagg on 43-point night: ‘Trying to make as many winning plays as I can’

Cooper Flagg scored 43 points Monday night. His explanation afterward sounded like a guy who would have been happy doing whatever the Mavericks needed.

“Whenever I get out there on the court, it just goes back to being a competitor and trying to make as many winning plays as I can,” Flagg told reporters, via Siddhant Gupta of Fadeaway World. “I’m trying to make the easy, right basketball play out there.”

Against the Pacers, that included taking over late. Flagg scored 16 fourth-quarter points in a 125-122 victory, finishing with 10 rebounds, six assists and three steals alongside his scoring outburst.

At 19, he’s already giving the Mavericks someone they can trust to finish games. He credited his teammates and coaches for giving him that responsibility.

“My teammates put me in good positions,” he said. “My coaches trust me to go out there and make plays.”

Flagg also explained how expanding his scoring options has helped him manage the physical demands of carrying an offense. Getting to the basket is valuable. Having another answer can make a long night considerably easier.

“It’s taxing to get downhill and all the way to the rim and try to finish over 7-footers all night, every night,” he said. “Just adding that in there it allows me to pace myself a bit and steal some easy ones.”

Specifically, Flagg pointed to getting comfortable stopping short of the rim and shooting over defenders. Those opportunities have become part of the work he trusts when the game gets tight.

“But again, just trusting the work that I put in all summer long and being comfortable with those shots,” he said. “I think it goes back to my teammates too, just trusting me with make or miss and getting to those spots.”

The Mavericks don’t need every night to produce 43 points. But having Flagg develop more ways to get a good shot late gives them something they can use well beyond November.

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