The Dallas Mavericks officially welcomed the newest face of the franchise Friday as they held their introductory press conference for No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg.
During the presser, Mavericks coach Jason Kidd previewed one way he plans to use Flagg—at point guard. Though the 6'9" Flagg has primarily played at forward throughout his life, Kidd wants to test him out by occasionally playing him at point guard.
“I want to put him at point guard," Kidd told the media. "I want to make him uncomfortable and see how he reacts being able to run the show. Being able to play the 2, play the 3, he's comfortable playing that. But we want to push, and I think he's going to respond in a positive way. It's all right to fail, it's all right to turn the ball over. We've talked about that. Just understanding the guys that I've been around that have been young from Giannis, giving him the ball and he failed, but he wanted to come back and have the ball."
Dallas Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd says he wants to play Cooper Flagg some at point guard:
— FOX 4 NEWS (@FOX4) June 27, 2025
"I'm excited about giving him the ball"#mffl #dallasmavericks pic.twitter.com/SPiJkIMLil
Mavericks minority owner Mark Cuban also agrees with the idea of playing Flagg at point guard.
“I’d send a text to J-Kidd, I'm like, 'point guard, point guard, point guard, let him bring the ball up,'" Cuban said. "… Cooper at point guard, Klay at the 2, P.J. at 3, [Anthony Davis] and then [Dereck Lively and Daniel Gafford], we'd have the biggest team in the NBA. We'd could play all kinds of games, all kinds of different types of mixes of lineups. We can play hard, we have depth."
Mark Cuban on Cooper Flagg and where he can play:
— Noah Weber (@noahweber00) June 27, 2025
“I’d send a text to J-Kidd, point guard, point guard, point guard, let him bring the ball up…”
Talks about a lineup of:
- Cooper Flagg
- Klay Thompson
- P.J. Washington
- Anthony Davis
- Dereck Lively II or Daniel Gafford… pic.twitter.com/nkUYYFhRUn
Playing Flagg at point guard ultimately gives the Mavericks greater flexibility with their lineups and will also help the rookie get more comfortable running the offense.
Flagg will begin training soon as preparation begins for the NBA summer league. His summer league debut will come on July 10 against the Los Angeles Lakers.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jason Kidd Unveils 'Uncomfortable' Plan for Cooper Flagg in Mavericks' Offense.
