Three-Time NBA Champion Puts Mavericks on Notice With Cooper Flagg Message

NBA Champion Had Words for Mavericks About Cooper Flagg on Wednesday

In its first four games of the season, Dallas is 1-3. Additionally, in those games, Flagg averaged 13 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1 steal and 2 turnovers. Additionally, he shot 38% from the field and 26.7% from beyond the arc.

This has led many to believe that the Maine native may have too much on his plate right now since he is not a natural point guard, which could be ruining his development early on.

On Wednesday, former NBA wing Danny Green sent a message about when he thinks Dallas should stop starting Flagg at point guard.

"By the new year. To me, I'm saying by early December, but at most, if I'm [head coach] Jason Kidd, you give it to the new year," Green said about when the Mavericks should end the Flagg experiment at point guard.

"He has to grow up very fast if you want him to be the guy. If you want to win right now, because you only have a two, three-year window. And [Anthony Davis], we don't know how well his body is gonna hold up. You don't have time to experience. You need to make moves fast unless you know and you have a lot of faith in this kid growing up very fast. And if he grows up by the second half of the year, cool. But if he's not showing signs by the new year... we'll circle back to it next year or this summer."

The Mavericks are currently without All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving, who is recovering from an ACL injury he suffered in March. However, he has no concrete timetable for his return, and if Dallas wants to establish itself as a contender in the Western Conference, it needs to work around this.

Additionally, the Mavericks signed D'Angelo Russell in the offseason, though he has come off the bench in all four of his games so far. If the team does opt to end the Flagg experiment at point guard, Russell would likely be the next man up.

There is a lot to like about Flagg and his fit in Dallas. He plays a very well-rounded style of basketball and should be able to complement players like Anthony Davis, Klay Thompson and Irving once he returns. However, so far, it is clear that something is not working for the Mavericks.

The season is young, and a lot of basketball remains, but Dallas may want to make some changes before it digs itself too deep a hole to get out of. And Flagg may be the first player impacted by those changes.