Cooper Flagg is already making the crucial fix Mavericks need to be unstoppable

Ahead of the 2025-26 season, Cooper Flagg is working on his 3-point jumper, and him making considerable improvements in this area would truly make the Dallas Mavericks one of the most unstoppable teams in the NBA once they're fully healthy.

Flagg's trainer, Matt MacKenzie, recently spoke with Mark Medina of RG, and he specifically dove into Flagg's work on his 3-point jumper, especially the timing.

"He has been really working on improving the time it takes to be able to get off clean 3s," MacKenzie said.

Flagg's potential shooting leap would unlock the Mavs' entire offense

Flagg's 3-point shooting was a small area of concern during NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, as he wasn't as efficient as Mavs fans hoped (even though he was taking extremely tough shots since he was tasked with being a primary creator), and him focusing on the speed of his release ahead of the season beginning will be major for Dallas as they try to return to the playoffs.

His shooting will undoubtedly end up being one of the swing factors of how successful his rookie year is, and this mostly lies upon how Nico Harrison decided to build a frontcourt-dominated roster with players like Anthony Davis, Dereck Lively II, and Daniel Gafford. If Flagg wants to be able to play next to two of those bigs at the same time, he has to be an effective floor spacer who can get clean looks off, and expediting his shot should help him in that area significantly.

As a freshman at Duke, Flagg shot a respectable 38.5 percent from downtown, and Mavs fans would be thrilled if he could get near this number as a rookie in Dallas.

This shouldn't be expected, as the NBA's 3-point line is deeper than the college line, and it's a completely different game, but he is laying the framework to be a good shooter at the NBA level.

During MacKenzie's conversation with Medina, he specifically noted that Flagg has been working on catching the ball cleanly on catch-and-shoot looks to help speed up his load-up and release, and he has even been experimenting with different ways to create some extra separation when he is shooting off the dribble.

Flagg knows that the Mavericks are going to rely upon him heavily to begin the season, especially since Kyrie Irving is out with a torn ACL, and Mavs fans could even see Jason Kidd give him some run at point guard or shooting guard. Kidd compared him to Grant Hill earlier this offseason, and his point forward vision could be what makes Flagg and the Mavericks unstoppable.

Flagg is much more than an athletic power forward who can throw down monster dunks.

He is a monster defender whose offensive game is evolving, and if his intense focus on his jumper and its mechanics pays off, the sky is the limit for the Mavericks. Flagg is going to be getting plenty of open looks off the catch, especially once Irving is back in the lineup, and Mavs fans will quickly realize why he is such a special prospect once he gets to play off Davis and Irving.

He's the perfect player that Dallas could've added to form a big three with Davis and Irving, and it'll be scary hours for the rest of the NBA if he is a sniper from downtown as a rookie. As a third option, Flagg won't always be defended by the other team's best defender, and he should have plenty of room to let it fly with confidence and fluidity when he gets the rock.

Flagg improving on his jumper ahead of the regular season was a necessity to be a dream fit into the Mavs' big-ball scheme, and his ability to adapt and fill whatever role Kidd asks of him will be crucial as he begins his NBA journey.