Cooper Flagg is gearing up to make his professional debut on July 10th, as the Dallas Mavericks open up against the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2025 Las Vegas Summer League. However, Mavs head coach Jason Kidd has revealed his plans to play Flagg at the point guard position, a spot on the floor where Flagg hasn't primarily shone.
In a recent interview, Kidd shared his intentions to play the former Duke Blue Devil at point guard during his rookie season in Dallas.
"I want to put him at point guard," Kidd said. "I want to make him uncomfortable and see how he reacts being able to run the show. Being able to play the two, play the three, he's comfortable playing that. But we want to push. And I think he's going to respond in a positive way...I'm excited about giving him the ball against the Lakers and seeing what happens."
Now, although Flagg was never a primary point guard during his freshman season with the Blue Devils, he's virtually a positionless prospect. The No. 1 overall draft choice led Duke in assists last season, averaging 4.2 a night, while also shooting 38.5% from three-point range. At 6'9, Flagg can guard the one through floor and was an outstanding perimeter defender at Duke.
Kidd testing Flagg out at different positions on the floor makes sense, given the Mavericks' complete roster that is ready to win now. After the lottery, when it was known that Flagg would ultimately be a Maverick, it was put into question how he'd fit in this crowded Dallas frontcourt as a three or stretch four. Between PJ Washington, Dereck Lively II, Daniel Gafford, and Anthony Davis, the frontcourt for the Mavericks is pretty filled up.
However, with Kyrie Irving set to miss a significant portion of the 2025-26 NBA season after suffering a torn ACL in March, making Flagg the ring leader makes perfect sense. True point guard depth is something that the Dallas Mavericks lack. The Mavericks acquired D'Angelo Russell via free agency this offseason, but are missing a true floor general outside of the veteran. Giving Flagg time to develop running the offense, given the passing ability, shooting prowess, and defensive capabilities the star prospect already has, makes perfect sense with how the Mavs' roster is currently constructed.