When the Dallas Mavericks decided to start Cooper Flagg at point guard at the start of the season, the decision was heavily criticized by everyone. Flagg didn't really play point guard prior to the league, and handing the reins of the offense to a rookie without experience at the position seemed unwise. And at first, it really seemed like it was going to fail.
Now, though, the experiment has paid off. The Mavericks have somewhat recovered from their dismal start and are now trying to make their way into the Play-In Tournament. Along the way, Flagg has developed into a solid ball-handler who could run the offense. It was an insane gamble that paid off.
Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd was asked about the move. The head coach vehemently defended his decision and called out the media's “criticism” of his decisions.
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“Criticism? That’s your opinion,” Kidd said, per Grant Afseth. “You guys write that bulls—. That’s not — I’ve done this. I’ve played this game. I played it. I know what the f— I’m doing. I don’t give a f— what you guys write because you guys have never played the game. I build players, so I know what the f— I’m doing. So if I take criticism, it only makes me better, because if I wasn’t doing it right, you guys wouldn’t be poking holes in what I’ve done.”
Originally entering the league as a forward, Kidd made the bold decision to make Flagg the point guard of the team early in the year. It was a dangerous decision: the young Mavericks rookie hadn't had any reps at the position, and playing point guard in the NBA is incredibly difficult.
Looking back at Kidd's career, though, it's easy to see why he made this decision. Back when he was the coach of the Milwaukee Bucks, Kidd did the same thing for Giannis Antetokounmpo. The move to give him more playmaking responsibilities allowed the Greek Freak to grow into a complete player. Perhaps this was the vision that Kidd had for Flagg, and it's turning out to be a good decision. Through the last two months, Flagg is averaging around 22 points and 4.6 assists per game.