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Mavericks’ Cooper Flagg monster slam dunk has American Airlines Center going wild
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- Mavericks’ Cooper Flagg monster slam dunk has American Airlines Center going wild
The post Mavericks' Cooper Flagg monster slam dunk has American Airlines Center going wild appeared first on ClutchPoints .
The Dallas Mavericks needed a spark after the lopsided loss against the Oklahoma City Thunder , and Cooper Flagg delivered it with force. From the opening stretch, the rookie rose to the moment against the Houston Rockets , shifting the pace of the night and energizing the building. And when his slam dunk later stamped the exclamation point on the performance, what began as a tense Rockets matchup quickly turned into a showcase for Cooper Flagg's rise — the kind of night that pushes a Mavericks fanbase to lean forward and believe .
During the fourth quarter, with the Mavericks up 120–107, Brandon Williams fired a short pass from half court. Instantly, Flagg caught it in stride, tore in from the three-point line, and detonated at the rim. The monster slam dunk sent American Airlines Center into a full roar . In that instant, it felt like a statement, one made in the air, hanging above a Rockets defense that could only turn and look up. Ultimately, the No. 1 pick out of Duke finished with 19 points on 7-of-15 shooting, plus five rebounds, three assists, two steals, and two blocks in 36 sharp minutes.
A breakthrough win for the Mavericks
The Mavericks closed out a 122–109 win over the Rockets. They bounced back from the Thunder loss where Anthony Davis struggled with just two points. In contrast, the response tonight was cleaner. Sharper. More urgent. As a result, the Mavericks improved to 9–16 and still to No. 12 in the West. The Rockets slipped to 15–6 after entering the night with momentum from Kevin Durant 's celebration of his 31,000-point milestone.
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Meanwhile, Cooper Flagg's progress is becoming impossible to ignore . Through 24 regular-season games, he averages 17.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 3.3 assists, and shoots 47.5 percent from the field. Week by week, his instincts sharpen. And with each rising cheer inside the arena, his confidence climbs even higher.
If this is how Cooper Flagg lifts the Mavericks in December, what happens when the lights get brighter? What happens when the games start to tighten? Kyrie Irving is still absent. But once he returns, could Flagg and the Mavericks flip the script and storm back into the race?
Related: Kevin Durant shows 'love' to Mavericks' Cooper Flagg after generational duel
Related: How Anthony Davis out-dueled Kevin Durant in Mavericks' big win over Rockets
