Cooper Flagg is already fully embracing the Mavericks' shocking experiment for him

Nearly two weeks ago, during Cooper Flagg's introductory press conference with the Dallas Mavericks just days after he was drafted with the No. 1 overall pick, Jason Kidd made the bold proclamation that he wanted Flagg to play some point guard. There had already been rumbles that Kidd liked his ability as a facilitator, even comparing him to the likes of Grant Hill, and Flagg made it clear that he is excited and eager for the role that Kidd has carved out for him ahead of Summer League which begins on Thursday evening against the Los Angeles Lakers.

After practice on Tuesday, Flagg was asked what he thinks about getting to play some point guard and handling the rock early and often, and his answer shows that he is ready to rock ahead of Thursday.

"Yeah, I’m looking forward to it," Flagg said about the opportunity to play point guard. "Coach Scheyer trusted me a lot last year, and I handled it a lot…Set up a lot of different actions, I think it’s something I can do at a high level, so I’m excited to just experiment and do some new things."

Flagg is ready to endure the ups and downs of Kidd's point guard vision

For starters, Flagg is known for being one of the humblest guys around, and the fact that he pats himself on the back regarding his ability as a point guard shows that he truly believes in his abilities in that department. On top of that, he doubled down on how Duke prepared him for this moment (he first mentioned this during his introductory press conference), and he could shock everyone with his ability to handle the ball, create his own shot, and run the offense at Summer League right out of the gates.

The beauty of Summer League is that players can play freely without having to worry about mistakes, and that is the exact message Kidd has conveyed to Flagg thus far. Even during the regular season, Kidd is huge on energy and effort, and with those being two things that Flagg has already mastered, everything else is poised to fall into place for him as he travels through the early stages of his Mavs journey.

"It gives me a lot of confidence, obviously, having that kind of messaging, confidence from him," Flagg said about Kidd. "Just knowing that he’s gonna trust me to try some new things."

Flagg continued and spoke about how Kidd has stressed to him that failure will come, but he isn't worried about that. Kidd just wants him to be himself and play his game, and that shouldn't be a problem for Flagg.

While Flagg is known for being a lengthy athletic wing who can lock down opposing players on defense while scoring in a variety of different ways on the other end, Kidd's plan to allow him to be a lead ball handler at Summer League and potentially during the regular season could change everything when it comes to his development.

Kidd is known for helping Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo develop into someone who can handle the ball and push the ball in transition on his own, and Flagg growing as a ball handler and a facilitator this summer could work wonders for his game moving forward. He is already known for being a criminally underrated passer, and that part of his game could end up being on full display at Summer League as well if he ends up handling the ball as much as expected.

On Tuesday, Mavs Summer League head coach Josh Broghamer talked about making Flagg "uncomfortable" while in Vegas to see what he can do, and he said that he was always trying to "make the right play" during his first practice, even with Dallas getting him to so many different things early on.

One play that Broghamer specifically noted from practice was a high-flying lob that Flagg threw to Moussa Cisse, which ended in a big-time for Cisse, and even though Flagg loves throwing lobs, he told Broghamer that he still needs to put in some work in that area.

Flagg's willingness to admit to one of his new coaches where he needs to improve shows that he is all about winning, and while he will likely only play a few Summer League games in Las Vegas, he is going to do whatever it takes to help his team win as soon as he steps onto the floor.

Whether that includes him handling the ball every time down the floor or playing his more natural position on the wing, Flagg trusts Kidd, Broghamer, and the rest of the coaching staff's vision for him, and Summer League is going to give him a golden opportunity to spread his wings and fly.