Brandon Williams did not sugarcoat it. The Dallas Mavericks shot 3-of-22 from three-point range in a 117-90 loss to the Charlotte Hornets on Tuesday night. The Hornets went 20-of-51. Williams, who led Dallas with 18 points going 10-of-11 from the free-throw line, was asked after the game about the perimeter problem that has followed this team throughout the 2025-26 NBA season.
“Other teams are shooting — they’re making more than we’re taking,” Williams said. “It’s tough mathematically. We’ve got to give ourselves a chance.”
The math is hard to argue with. Charlotte outscored Dallas by 51 points on three-pointers alone. The Hornets rank second in the NBA in three-point attempts per game this season at 42.2. Dallas ranks 28th at 31.0, converting at 33.9%. Since the All-Star break, the Mavericks have attempted just 26.3 threes per game — the fewest in the league. Charlotte has attempted 48.2 in that same stretch, the most. Tuesday was a snapshot of that gap in real time.
Dallas Mavericks’ Three-Point Attempts Have Been the Bigger Problem
Williams was asked specifically what Dallas needs to do differently on the offensive end to create better looks from deep. His answer was direct.
“Kicking the ball out, finding our shooters, and then actually taking them,” Williams said. “I think that number won’t change unless we actually shoot them. So I think that’s self-explanatory.”
The issue, as Williams framed it, is not just shot selection. It is about generating attempts in the first place — and trusting the players on the perimeter to pull the trigger when open. The Mavericks were without several of their better perimeter options on Tuesday. Klay Thompson sat out with a right adductor contusion, Naji Marshall missed his fourth straight game with a right finger contusion, and Cooper Flagg has been out eight consecutive games with a left midfoot sprain. Marvin Bagley III, Tyler Smith, Moussa Cissé, Kyrie Irving, and Dereck Lively II were also sidelined.
Mavericks coach Jason Kidd acknowledged the shooting problem after the loss.
“We didn’t shoot the three well,” Kidd said. “We created 22, made three. We have to shoot better there.”
Max Christie, who has made 133 three-pointers this season — a career high — went 1-of-9 from deep in 33 minutes Tuesday. Kidd was asked about the recent cold stretch.
“It’s just the life of a shooter,” Kidd said. “You go through these spells of hot, cold, warm. Right now, we’ve got to get him going. He’s on a cold streak right now.”
The issue runs deeper than one player. Dallas got to the free-throw line 42 times and made 31, but trading twos for threes against a team with Charlotte’s volume is not a formula that holds up.
Defensive Rebounding Giving Charlotte Hornets Open Three-Point Looks
Williams also connected the three-point problem to a breakdown on the defensive glass. P.J. Washington, who returned after missing three games with a left ankle sprain, identified Charlotte’s 13 offensive rebounds as the entry point for the barrage of open perimeter looks.
“Their offensive rebounds led to a bunch of threes for them, and that’s where they got most of them from,” Washington said. “I think we’ve been terrible at it all year, and it’s something we definitely have to get better at.”
Williams agreed that the responsibility for rebounding extends beyond the frontcourt.
“Our bigs are dominant, but it’s on us to help them and carry out the rebounding responsibilities,” Williams said.
It is a two-sided problem. Limit the offensive rebounds, and Charlotte gets fewer second-chance threes. Move the ball out of the paint quicker on offense, and Dallas creates more of its own. Williams understands both sides. Whether the Mavericks execute on either during a back-to-back Thursday in Orlando is the next test.
Dallas is 21-40 on the season with two wins in its last 16 games. The road trip continues Thursday night at the Orlando Magic.
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