"I want him to play the whole schedule": Cooper Flagg’s trainer on Flagg’s Summer League & Mark Cuban’s comparisons to Kobe Bryant & Dirk Nowitzki

LAS VEGAS – So much for the adage that Summer League games don’t matter.

Don’t tell that to Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg, who critiqued his Summer-League debut against the Los Angeles Lakers with brutal honesty.

“That’s one of the worst games of my life,” Cooper said after scoring 10 points while shooting 5-for-21 from the field and 0-for-5 from deep in Dallas’ 87-85 win over the Lakers on Thursday.

Though he added six rebounds, four assists and three steals, Cooper talked in detail with his trainer, Matt MacKenzie, on how he could rectify his performance.

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“He beat himself up after the night against LA,” MacKenzie told Sportskeeda. “He obviously wasn’t happy with the way he shot the ball. He felt like he got sped up. He felt like he rushed a lot of his shots. So we had a conversation [on Friday] just about how we needed him to settle in and we needed him to understand that he has the ability to impact the game in so many different ways. When he doesn’t have his shot falling, he has to make sure that he’s pursuing rebounds and make sure that he’s doing all the little things out there to get himself going. And then the shots will fall.”

That’s exactly what happened in the Mavericks’ 76-69 loss to the Spurs on Saturday. Flagg finished with 31 points while shooting 10-for-21 from the field, 3-for-9 from 3 and 8-for-13 from the free-throw line along with four rebounds. Afterwards, MacKenzie spoke with Sportskeeda about a number of topics. That included Flagg’s Summer League performances as well as former Mavericks owner Mark Cuban evoking comparisons to Kobe Bryant’s trajectory and early signs of Dirk Nowitzki’s step-back jumper.

Editor’s note: The following one-on-one conversation has been edited and condensed.

It’s summer league. But how do you evaluate Cooper’s first two games?

MacKenzie: “In the second game, he played a little bit better in terms of him seeing the game slow down. He was starting to settle into what was expected of him. I still felt like he felt a little bit rushed with some of his shots. But I think as he continues to go through this whole process, the game will continue to slow down and continue to play as comfortably as he possibly can. I saw some really good things. He got to his spots. He played aggressively on offense. He got really good looks, not only from a scoring standpoint, but getting guys involved. I was happy with that.”

It’s easy to see the difference in his makes in the first game (5-for-21) and second game (10-for-21). But what explained the difference?

MacKenzie: “I feel like he was very aggressive with getting to his spots and taking the right shots. I thought early in the game, he rushed a few shots and was a little off balance. I feel like he didn’t have his hands on the ball as well as he would have liked. In the second half, he did a really good job with catching the ball and getting set. Obviously, we saw that he was going to make some shots.”

It may not be surprising since players are competitive and Cooper is the No. 1 pick. But what did you make that in summer league games that Cooper is getting trapped full court, getting double teamed after opening tip and drawing physicality when he drives to the basket?

MacKenzie: “He takes it as a compliment. But I didn’t expect someone would be picking him up full court from the moment he takes the ball out of bounds and then trapping him. But you got to take it as a compliment. With Cooper’s competitive nature, it’s funny because I talked to him earlier and he said, ‘If it was up to me, I would play the entire Summer League.’ He wants to play every single game. He loves this. He loves this environment. He thinks that it’s great. He wishes that he can continue to play. But due to the nature of the NBA and what the teams are doing, they’re probably going to shut him down.”

Have they given clarity or is that still fluid?

MacKenzie: “That’s still up in the air. But with just how he is, I want him to play the whole schedule. He’s loving it. He loves his coaches. He loves the group of guys. They just want him to continue to go out there and get settled into this pace and physicality and continue to get his feet under him.”

Given Cooper’s competitiveness, how did you see him handle the games within the game? Bronny [James] took the defensive assignment on him. And even though they weren’t matched up, Cooper and Dylan Harper played against each other as the No. 1 and No. 2 pick.

MacKenzie: “He’s really just trying to enjoy the moment. He doesn’t read into those matchups a whole lot. He knows Dylan. He knows Bronny. He has a history with those guys. He’s played against those guys in the past. And he understands how there might be pressure from the media and pressure from fans because of those matchups.

But he’s really just trying to come out here and be the best he can possibly be and continue to grow within the Mavs organization. He’s enjoying his time out there. But he’s just so competitive and wants to be involved in every single game that he possibly could be. It’s been really fun seeing him go through this process. It’s tough. Any time you are thrown in a situation where you’ve played with guys that you never have played with before and you’re learning some of these different sets and concepts that are expected of you, there always is going to be a learning curve. I think for him, he wants to continue to learn and continue to get better and he doesn’t necessarily want to be shut down.”

Not to throw out comparisons. But Cuban said that Cooper's step back reminded him of Dirk’s early in his career.

MacKenzie: (laughs) “Obviously a bold comparison. But for somebody like Mark Cuban to compare him to Dirk Nowitzki is an incredible compliment. I think Cooper will take that. He likes that pressure and wants to be compared to the greats. He wants to be as good as he can possibly be. Somebody like Dirk Nowitzki is a player that we would love to meet and be able to pick the brain of at some point down the road.”

Practically speaking, Cuban said the plan is for Dirk eventually to link up. Knowing who Dirk is and the skills he had as a player, what do you think Cooper can take from him?

MacKenzie: “Dirk would be an incredible mentor for Cooper obviously with his whole approach to the game and how intentional he is with his work. I think that obviously Dirk having the career that he had in Dallas that he would just be an incredible mentor for Cooper. Not only on the court work, but off the court with how to carry yourself as a pro with Dirk having a long career in one city and really being able to really be a leader for the franchise and the fanbase, I think Dirk would be an incredible person for Cooper to surround himself with. That is something that Cooper and I have talked about with being able to talk to Dirk and be able to pick his brain on some of the things that he did in terms of his preparation.

It's funny you say that because when Cooper was young, we used to study film of Dirk. We used to watch how he would use his body and use his length to be able to create space and be able to get off his shot. He’s somebody that Cooper has taken bits and pieces of his game and modeled who he is as a player.”

Cuban stressed he’s not comparing Cooper to Kobe Bryant because they’re different players. But Cuban invoked Kobe because he had some time to develop. Though Kobe was highly touted, he didn’t start right away and took time to develop his first two years. How do you view that?

MacKenzie: “For Cooper, the situation that he’s in where he has other veterans around him with an expectation to win, I think that’s going to help him really continue to develop at the right pace. I think a lot of times, a rookie coming in, especially a No. 1 pick, is put in a situation where they have all of the pressure and all of the weight on their shoulders to be the primary guy. He can come into a situation where he can play among other veterans on a team where they are likely to be a playoff team. That’s perfect. I think that’s a perfect situation for him. It’s a perfect environment for him to play right away.

It’s perfect for his development in terms of his ability to impact winning in different ways. He doesn’t necessarily have to take on the primary scoring role right away, although he may be expected to do that on certain nights. That’s not necessarily going to be his only expectation. He can be used as a facilitator. He can be used as a playmaker. He’s somebody that can come in and guard the team’s best player. Whatever Coach Kidd and his staff need from him on any given night, he can do it. So I think that’s going to be to his benefit in terms of developing as an NBA player.”

How do you view the parallels that Kobe responded to setbacks well and used that as both motivation and an opportunity to play better the next game?

MacKenzie: “That’s something that Cooper will continue to develop as he goes through his professional career. Cooper is his worst critic. So you heard his comments after the game the other night against LA how it was one of his worst games that he ever played. There’s nothing that anybody in the media is going to say that’s worse than what he’s saying to himself. He criticizes his own game more than anybody in the media possibly could. He has incredibly high expectations of himself. And we reflect on every single game on things he needs to continue to get better at. So if there was any type of concern on how much this means to him, that can all be thrown away. That was never an issue.

He will always continue to look at, ‘How can I be better? How can I be a better player for this organization? How can I impact winning at the highest level in the NBA?’ He’s going to do everything that he possibly can do within his power to be the best version of himself.”

Given what you said that Cooper is his worst critic, what was he like between the Summer League opener and the second game?

MacKenzie: “He beat himself up after the night against LA. He obviously wasn’t happy with the way he shot the ball. He felt like he got sped up. He felt like he rushed a lot of his shots. So we had a conversation yesterday just about how we needed him to settle in and we needed him to understand that he has the ability to impact the game in so many different ways. When he doesn’t have his shot falling, he has to make sure that he’s pursuing rebounds and make sure that he’s doing all the little things out there to get himself going. And then the shots will fall.

He wasn’t concerned by any means. But it was more of a reminder that this is an adjustment period and there will be a little bit of a transition period where he’s learning how to play amongst these new players and learning how to play with different coaches.”

J Kidd has encouraged him to be a playmaker and to be creative. What do you think that partnership will do for him?

MacKenzie: “I think having a coach that believes in you the way that J Kidd does is just so crucial for Cooper’s development. Talking to J Kidd and Frank Vogel yesterday after their shootaround and practice, those guys instill confidence in Cooper. They make sure that he understands that they have all the confidence in the world for him to be a ball handler, facilitator and leader of this team. I think that’s incredibly crucial in his ability to understand what his role may be moving forward.”

Once everything settles here, what does Cooper’s regimen/schedule look like from then until training camp?

MacKenzie: “He’ll split time between Dallas and Maine. So I’ll be spending plenty of time out in Dallas just to continue to develop relationships with his coaching staff and learn about what is expected of him and what the processes are. Then he’ll spend some time up in Maine. He has a camp that he’ll be running in the middle of August for the young kids in Maine. Between myself and the Dallas Mavericks coaching staff, we’ll continue to work on all of our individual player development. Then he’ll probably be in Dallas full time at the end of August.”

What are the details about his camp?

MacKenzie: “Because Cooper comes from such a small state, he is such a role model for all of the youth. For him to be able to come back to the state of Maine and run a camp for all the up-and-coming Maine basketball players, it’s incredibly well received. Everybody jumps on board. It’s already sold out. It sold out within 30 minutes. There are over 700 kids. That’s cool.”

Mark Medina is an NBA insider for Sportskeeda. Follow him on X, Blue Sky, Instagram, Facebook and Threads.

Edited by Jeet Pukhrambam