The next Antetokounmpo! Kidd wants to reuse his old tricks, Flag may serve as No. 1

Sports Weekly All-Media Reporter Li Hui

The selection of Flag made the Mavericks attract much attention next season. Judging from their paper strength, they undoubtedly have the ability to compete for the championship. But the Mavericks still have a very difficult problem at the moment, that is, their No. 1 position. When Irving is unable to return due to a serious knee injury in the short term, the Mavericks lack reliable players in the No. 1 position.

According to previous reports, the Mavericks hope to sign a reliable No. 1 position in the upcoming free market to survive the time when Irving is absent. Their goals include Chris Paul, Russell, Brogdon and other players. However, the Mavericks seem to have other plans, which is to let the new No. 1 pick Flag serve as the No. 1 position.

Today, the Mavericks held a press conference for Flag. At the press conference, the Mavericks coach Kid said that he wanted Flag to be the No. 1 position. "I won't consider the position. I want him to play the point guard, I want him to feel uncomfortable, see how he will deal with it, see if he can control the game, whether he can play the No. 2 and No. 3 positions - he is comfortable playing in these positions, but we want to put more pressure on him, and I think he will respond positively."

Kid's idea undoubtedly makes People think of Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is now the top star in the league. In the 2013 draft, the Bucks selected Antetokounmpo in the first round. At that time, Antetokounmpo was not as comprehensive as he is now. However, under the arrangement of the then coach Kidd, Antetokounmpo was often placed in the No. 1 position with the purpose of developing his ball-holding offensive ability. Although the Bucks and Antetokounmpo paid a lot of tuition for this, Antetokounmpo, who had a strong understanding ability, eventually developed excellent ball-holding ability and eventually helped him become a superstar in the league.

Now, Flag may be on the road that Antetokounmpo once did. It can even be said that there is no coach with more say in this regard than Kidd, who has a forward-height player as the No. 1 position and open up his ability to hold the ball. From the starting point, Flag undoubtedly has an advantage over the former Antetokounmpo, and his technical ability is more comprehensive. In the NCAA, Flag also played the team's ball-holding role, so he had a good chance to quickly become a player who was very outstanding in ball-holding and offensive under Kidd's training. This is a great benefit for him and the Mavericks. After all, for an outside player, if you want to become a real superstar, ball-holding and offensive attack is undoubtedly very important. Although Flag is not a strictly outside player, this era requires offensive players to have more comprehensive skills.

"I think it's a versatile position that can do a lot of different jobs, and I think, in terms of the team lineup, we can play really good position-free basketball, we have a lot of players that can do a lot of different jobs. So I think that's going to be one of our biggest strengths, and I'll try to do that and do what I can to help the team win," Flag said in an interview.

There is no doubt that if Flag can become a player who can launch an offense with the ball and organize an offense, the Mavericks' overall competitiveness will be further improved next season, and their lineup will look weak.