There’s not a question of if Cooper Flagg will be a key player for the Dallas Mavericks in his rookie season, it is what position he will play that Jason Kidd and his staff are trying to figure out.
In the Mavericks’ final two preseason games before the 2025 regular season begins, the former Duke star and top overall pick in this year’s draft started at point guard.
Following Dallas’ game against the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday, Kidd wasn’t ready to name Flagg the full-time starter at point guard.
“There’s a lot of good, positive stories here, and so we have some time to make a decision,” the coach said.
It’s not a position Flagg is used to playing, as he spent his one year with the Blue Devils starting at forward. But with the Mavericks wanting to go to a large lineup, it might be where the 6-foot-9 rookie fits.
In two games running the point, Flagg averaged 12 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists. But there’s more than filling the stat book that comes with being the point guard for an offense.
“He’s got to keep an index of who got shots, what was the last shot, and that’ll come with reps,” Kidd said. “But I think [Flagg] has done an incredible job of handling the situation of running the team. And the other thing that I think that is going unnoticed is that his teammates enjoy him running the team.”