‘Just Trying to Impact Winning’: Inside Cooper Flagg’s 29-Point, 11-Assist Performance Against Miami Heat

MIAMI — Two days after a left shoulder injury kept him out of a loss to the San Antonio Spurs, Cooper Flagg scored 29 points, handed out 11 assists, and blocked Andrew Wiggins’ 3-point attempt in the final minute of the Dallas Mavericks’ 113-109 win over the Miami Heat on Monday night at Kaseya Center.

He also had 6 rebounds, a career-high 5 steals, and two more blocks, then drove past Wiggins for the clinching layup with 10 seconds left. It was his 14th career double-double and his first this season.

Flagg won NBA Rookie of the Year last season while Dallas finished 26-56. Mavericks coach Dusty May, hired in June, said Flagg is determined to get the Mavericks back to playing meaningful games at the right time of year.

“Thing with Coop, he’s trying to win. Last year’s the first year of his life that he hasn’t won big. And he’s determined to get us back to where we’re playing extremely meaningful games at the right time of year,” May said. “And each game matters a lot because the guy’s a winner. You see the plays he makes. He has a different gear. He has a different level of focus and attention. When he needs it, it’s there.”

“But to see the plays he made, I mean, the last biggest possession of the game, we just put it in his hands and knew he would make a great decision because of how unselfish he can play above the defense,” May continued. “But also just his ability to get by people and finish in the paint is incredible.”

Cooper Flagg’s Return And The Final Four Minutes

Flagg played 39 minutes, 44 seconds. Before tip-off, May said the team had not discussed a minutes restriction for him.

“Cooper is using the warmup to gauge whether he’s ready to go. So we’ll see, it’s a true game-time decision,” May explained before the game. “But I expect him to play, I’m expecting that, but it’s not for sure.”

Flagg scored 12 of his points in the fourth quarter on 5-of-7 shooting. In the final four minutes, he was also called for offensive fouls on back-to-back possessions, with Pelle Larsson and Davion Mitchell drawing the charges.

“I think just everybody getting set, just waiting a second. I think I was a little sped up on the other two of getting downhill and not waiting for guys to get to their position,” Flagg said. “So gotta be better at playing and staying on my feet and reading when they’re coming to take those charges and pass it off to that man.”

Wiggins guarded him on the last Dallas possession, 21 seconds after Flagg’s block at the other end protected a 111-109 lead. Flagg had scored on a pull-up 3-pointer with 2:02 left for Dallas’ previous basket.

“Like I said, just get set. Once I had everybody set and everybody was in good positions, just taking advantage of the space that we had, being able to get downhill and challenge them at the rim,” Flagg explained. “And I was confident in my ability to get by him, create an advantage for our team and make the right play.”

Flagg made 7 of his 11 attempts in the paint, and Miami often sent a third defender at him late. May said Flagg was still making the right passes.

“Well, we were struggling to find different ways to just get him in some space. And I thought our guys had good off-ball movement and spacing, and he just needed a crease. I mean, that’s a bad dude to get in the paint like that and finish,” May said. “There were three guys trying to block it late. That’s one thing when you do get an angle, get to the rim on their perimeter defenders and you have Bam and Giannis coming over to block it, to have the creativity to get it up off the rim. He had a couple that they brought the third defender and drew the charge on him, but he was making the right passes.”

“He was fanning out, he was starting closeouts. That’s one thing about Coop, the ball comes out of his hands at the right time,” May continued. “If we get to where we’re really finding a rhythm offensively, he’s gonna have some 15-, 20-assist games, there’s no question.”

What Flagg Brings Beyond Scoring

Flagg’s 11 assists tied the career high he set Nov. 28, 2025, at the Los Angeles Lakers, and 8 of them came before halftime. Two of his 5 steals turned into fast-break baskets he assisted, a 3-pointer by Kyrie Irving and a layup by P.J. Washington.

He has at least three steals in each of his three games this season. At 19 years, 309 days old, he is the youngest non-rookie in the league.

“It’s just kind of always how I played, just making the right plays and whether [it was] scoring, passing, rebounding, getting into lanes, steals, blocks, just trying to impact the game and impact winning and competing at a high level,” Flagg said.

Flagg and Irving combined for 17 of Dallas’ 31 assists. Zaccharie Risacher said defenses will adjust to Flagg as the season goes on.

“So he always makes the right play. As the year goes, the defense is going to be ready for him. And you can already see that he’s not forcing anything. He’s playing the right way. If there’s somebody open, go ahead and hit him,” Risacher said. “And I feel like he’s just playing the right way. And that’s impressive. And he’s able to get buckets when we need it, able to make passes when we need it, able to make [stops] when we need it. So it’s just great to be able to play with him and again compete with him.”

Dallas finished with 11 steals and 10 blocks. Flagg said the defensive tone starts with being physical early, and he pointed to Washington and Risacher.

“For sure, yeah. I mean, I think just setting the tone early, being physical, guys like PJ and Zacch, that’s … those are the things that they’re gonna bring to our team every single night,” Flagg said. “So for them to just continue to step up these last couple nights and really just showing how much they can provide us without even having to put the ball in the basket.”

Flagg is in his second NBA season. He said Irving, Washington, and Daniel Gafford set the example for the younger players with their communication.

“It’s been great. Those are two guys, Gaff, PJ, and then obviously Kai, just great vets who set the tone, set the example. I think it’s been great for me and for all the other young guys just to learn from,” Flagg said. “They set really good examples. They’re great leaders with their communication, and they really show up and do it every single day. It’s been great just to learn from those guys. Great vets, great leaders, and there’s so much that we can learn from them.”

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra will coach the U.S. men’s national team through the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. Flagg played for USA Basketball at the under-17 level.

“I mean, I hadn’t really thought about that. Obviously, for me, I’ve played for the country before when I was younger, playing for under-17 teams, stuff like that. So for me, it’s obviously a pleasure to be able to play for my country,” Flagg said. “Any chance I get it, I have no idea what it’s going to look like. It’s a good way down the road.”

“So obviously, if I was ever asked to be able to play for my country, that’s something I would love to do,” Flagg continued. “It would be amazing.”

Dallas (2-2) hosts the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday at American Airlines Center, with tip-off set for 8:30 p.m. CT.