After a fantastic rookie season, everyone's asking: just how good can Cooper Flagg truly get? Forget the chatter about his three-point shot; the real key to Flagg becoming a championship-level player is leaning into what he already does best: dominating the paint. He put up a 29.5 percent mark from deep last season, and while some might scream "fix the shot," the real path to superstardom lies in his incredible downhill game.
He's Already A Force Driving To The Basket
If you watched Flagg at all last year, his control and pace going downhill were undeniable. This wasn't just good for a rookie, folks; he was among the league’s absolute best at scoring on drives. Seriously, out of players who drove at least 12 times per game, Flagg, at 12.8 drives, ranked seventh in the entire NBA in points per drive, dropping 0.71 points every time he attacked. That's efficiency! His physicality helped him get to his spots whenever he wanted, but it was his touch in the paint that really made him special. NBA.com data shows Flagg took the sixth-most non-rim paint field goals, hitting them at just above 47 percent. We're talking floaters, flips, pushes, hooks, short middies, all those crafty in-between buckets. To do that at his age, in a conference with paint protectors like Victor Wembanyama, Chet Holmgren, and Rudy Gobert lurking, is incredibly impressive. He literally never shied away from challenging the league’s finest shot-blockers, even taking it right at Giannis Antetokounmpo for a crucial late-game finish.Championships Aren't Won From Deep (Mostly)
Now, some are gonna shout, "But it's a space-and-chuck league, he needs to get that three-pointer to 40 percent!" Look, Flagg shot 29.5 percent from distance on 3.5 attempts in his rookie year. The league average was 36 percent last season, and it's hung around 35 to 37 percent since 2019. But let’s check the tape: the last seven non-Steph Curry NBA Finals MVPs. You got Jalen Brunson (2026, 36.9% on 7.1 3PA), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2025, 37.5% on 5.7 3PA), Jaylen Brown (2024, 35.4% on 5.9 3PA), Nikola Jokic (2023, 38.3% on 2.2 3PA), Giannis Antetokounmpo (2021, 30.3% on 3.6 3PA), LeBron James (2020, 34.8% on 6.3 3PA), and Kawhi Leonard (2019, 37.1% on 5.0 3PA). What do they all have in common? Most of them were barely a percentage point or two better than league average from three, if at all! Jokic was higher, but he only took two a game. What these guys *all* did, however, was get to their spot at will and absolutely score in the paint. They were straight-up forces of nature. Flagg’s path to becoming the best player on a championship team isn't about hitting threes at 40 percent. Becoming a league-average shooter is totally fine for him. His journey is about mastering that paint game. If he truly leans into what he already does best, with his defensive intuition, physical scoring, unprecedented touch, and off-the-charts growth rate, we're looking at a future unstoppable force.This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.