After landing one of the biggest prospects in recent history, the Dallas Mavericks have a big season ahead of them to start maximizing Cooper Flagg's potential and developing his game.
Everything they do from the start of the 2025/26 season has to be centered around Flagg, and there's no doubt it will be.
With Kyrie Irving out at least until January 2026, the Mavs are clearly without a great starting point guard.
They did sign D'Angelo Russell, but that move seems more like a desperation move than anything else due to the injury issues.
Russell is coming out of the worst season of his career, where not only are his stats terrible, but watching him play is even worse because his body language is not good at all.
During the 29 games he played for Brooklyn this season, he shot 36.7% from the field and 29% from 3-point range on nearly 7 attempts per game. And these are just stats that do not paint a full picture; his defense is consistently nonexistent.
However, this was not the Mavs' first option; they had reportedly wanted Chris Paul, but Paul was determined to play close to his home base in Los Angeles, so he rejected that.
So the situation at the point guard position in the Mavericks is not ideal, to say the least, at least not before Irving gets back from his injury.
According to Jason Kidd, they're also planning to play Cooper Flagg at that position.
As he put it, the goal is to make him feel uncomfortable, see how he reacts, and test his ability to run the show.
Kidd
Kidd
Credit Getty Images via AFP - Scanpix
It's an extremely interesting idea that we're going to analyze, what it means for the Mavs, and more importantly, what it means for Flagg's future.
First of all, the crucial man behind this idea is undoubtedly Kidd. We've already seen a similar approach during his time with Giannis Antetokounmpo.
It wasn't a major success at the time, but it arguably helped Giannis grow more comfortable as a creator by putting more pressure and the ball in his hands early in his career.
Giannis experiment
Back in the 2015–16 season, Jason Kidd began experimenting with Giannis Antetokounmpo as a point guard.
Although it wasn't a full-time role, during various stretches of games, Giannis served as the primary ball handler.
While there were some positives, the move ultimately didn't yield great results overall, and even the advanced statistics from that season reflect that.
In a lineup featuring Giannis as the lead ballhandler alongside Tyler Ennis, Khris Middleton, Jabari Parker, and Greg Monroe, the Bucks posted a turnover percentage of 18.5% over 108 possessions, roughly 5% higher than lineups that used Michael Carter-Williams as the floor general.
Giannis
Giannis
Credit AP – Scanpix
Another lineup where Giannis handled primary creation duties included O.J. Mayo, Khris Middleton, Jabari Parker, and Greg Monroe.
This was actually the most-used lineup with Giannis as the main initiator, logging 280 possessions.
The advanced stats paint a clear picture: that group scored just 95 points per 100 possessions, an extremely poor mark.
For comparison, the Bucks' most-used lineup with Michael Carter-Williams at point guard (over 1,049 possessions) averaged 114 points per 100 possessions, a full 19-point difference.
The problem was that Giannis always felt most comfortable in specific areas of the floor, particularly in high-post situations, where his isolation play and passing vision could shine within proper spacing.
But when he had to dribble more, initiate pick-and-rolls as the ballhandler, or operate under tighter pressure, his decision-making simply didn't meet the expectations Kidd had. In short, Giannis wasn't fully comfortable in that expanded creator role.
From the next season, essentially, they stopped his experiment; however, Giannis did improve over the years in creating for others, so it's not entirely accurate to say Kidd's experiment did not yield any results.
It just wasn't something sustainable as a long-term primary option.
But Giannis and Cooper are completely different players, not just in terms of body type, but also in playstyle and natural instincts.
Giannis is a physical force, someone who thrives on downhill attacks and sheer athleticism, while Flagg is more polished fundamentally, with a smoother shooting stroke and a more cerebral approach to the game.
Although the experiment with Giannis yielded mixed results, the context this time is entirely different. That raises a real question: could Jason Kidd's bold idea actually work with Cooper Flagg in a way it never quite did with Giannis?
Breakdown of Cooper Flagg playing as a guard
It's essential to note that Flagg has a significantly better starting point than Giannis in terms of style of play and overall basketball skill set for the point guard position.
His overall potential is well-known, so there's no need to delve into that. Instead, we'll focus strictly on his playmaking abilities and how this point guard experiment could actually work.
Around 20% of Flagg's offensive playtypes during the 2024–25 college season came from pick-and-roll situations as the ballhandler.
Flagg
Flagg
Credit IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect - Scanpix
That was his most-used action, which gives us a strong foundation for analysis.
There are clear tendencies in his PNR game, things he already excels at, and areas that can be improved. Let's start with the strengths.
Flagg's ability to create his own shot out of PNR
One of Flagg's biggest strengths in the pick-and-roll is his ability to create space for himself and make confident, quick decisions, usually with a scoring mindset.
He reads defensive reactions very well. If defenders go under the screen, he punishes them immediately with a pull-up. If the defense is poorly positioned, he has no problem rejecting the screen and attacking the gap.
He's especially confident taking midrange shots out of these situations, which is a skill that should translate well to the NBA.
While his three-point shooting still needs some improvement, especially with the NBA line being deeper, he did raise his percentages by the end of the college season, showing clear progress (38%, 1.4 3p makes per game)
Now, you might wonder why we're talking about his shooting in a discussion about playmaking.
The answer is simple: in the NBA, being a threat to score opens up the floor and makes you a better passer.
The more attention you draw from defenders, the easier it is to find open teammates. And considering how talented Cooper Flagg already is, we're really talking about small adjustments, because the foundation is already elite.
Creating as a screener
Another important part of Flagg's game is his ability to be used as a screener, thanks to his size and versatility.
We often saw this during his time at Duke, and one of the key things that stands out is his ability to create short rolls.
He looks comfortable in these actions, showing the ability to create opportunities for others in challenging situations.
Flagg has great awareness of what the defense is doing; he quickly recognizes aggressive pick-and-roll coverages, such as hedges, and responds by slipping the screen at the right moment.
From there, he's able to make plays, often reading the weak side or corners effectively.
These situations often create a brief 3-on-2 or 2-on-1 advantage, depending on spacing, and Flagg generally reads those moments well.
There's definitely room for improvement in decision speed and precision, but this already gives him a strong foundation for someone expected to have more on-ball responsibilities.
This type of playmaking gets teammates involved in a different way than when you are constantly dribbling the ball, because a short roll creation requires multiple people touching the ball, which results in great ball movement overall.
Much like how Nikola Jokic creates out-of-screen actions. Of course, Jokic is the absolute best in the world at it, but Flagg has shown similar instincts.
He's proven to be unselfish and capable of making the right read, which is a promising sign for his future as a high-level creator.
Transition game
It's no secret that Flagg is an absolute beast in transition. His dominance in coast-to-coast situations stands out, his athleticism and speed with the ball really shine in these moments.
Honestly, I feel like this aspect of his game wasn't fully exploited at Duke, since they don't typically play at a fast pace.
Flagg
Flagg
Credit AP - Scanpix
Given how dominant Flagg is as a scorer in transition, one of the key areas for growth will be elevating that from just scoring to also creating for teammates more frequently in these situations.
That could be a massive asset for the Mavericks.
If Flagg can push the pace and consistently create opportunities for others in transition, it will likely become a major focus in his development. The potential here is truly off the charts.
Areas Flagg Needs to Improve
Ballhandling
One of the key areas Cooper must work on is his ball handling. It's not that he's a bad ballhandler — far from it — but there are some noticeable issues.
At times, he forces certain moves too often and becomes predictable, like the spin move he frequently uses when in trouble. His handle could use more fluidity and better timing, especially if he wants to consistently create separation.
Right now, he's more comfortable attacking the basket in situations where he doesn't dribble too much and can rely more on his size and explosiveness.
That's effective, but if he's going to play the point and initiate more offense, he'll need to sharpen his handle to beat defenders more creatively.
The encouraging part is that with Jason Kidd as his coach, someone who clearly has a vision and wants to push Flagg out of his comfort zone, this may be the best possible environment for him to develop that part of his game and become a more complete player.
Finishing, Post-Up
Another area where Flagg definitely has room to improve is finishing. This matters especially because, as mentioned earlier, his scoring potential is tied to how effectively he can be at the point guard position.
In the 2024–25 season, he shot 50% at the rim, which is decent, but there's clear room for growth.
He'll need to be a bit more creative and versatile around the basket. In the NBA, finishing is a whole different challenge, and if Flagg wants to be dominant in the same areas he was in college, he'll need to take a step forward.
Ideally, improving this part of his game will help him unlock a more consistent drive-and-kick dimension, drawing help from defenders and then kicking the ball out to open shooters.
Another valuable aspect of him playing point guard could be the ability to create mismatches and exploit them in the post.
He has the size to do that, and using post-ups selectively could become an efficient tool, not just to score, but also to create opportunities for teammates from double teams or help rotations.
Does Playing Flagg As A Guard Make Sense?
In the end, this feels like the right way to approach Flagg's development. Put him outside his comfort zone, push him to do things he's not fully comfortable with yet, and trust that his incredible talent and basketball IQ will allow him to grow through that experience and become a more complete player.
And really, what's the worst-case scenario?
If he struggles in those new situations, he still has the tools to succeed with the things he already dominates: his defensive presence, athleticism, transition play, and overall amazing talent.
Either way, Flagg is going to be great.
The only question is whether he can become an all-around force who impacts the game in multiple ways at both ends, or whether he'll lean into a few elite strengths and use them to their full potential.
Vukašin Nedeljković
Vukašin played basketball competitively in his youth, and now contributes to Synergy Sports Technology and Sportradar regarding basketball analysis. He also has experience working as a journalist in Serbia and is passionate about writing basketball articles mainly focused on basketball X's and O's.
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