Flagg! What happened to his struggling rookie year?

Since the start of the season, Flagg, the 2025 No. 1 pick, has played in 15 games. So far, his personal averages per game are 15.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.3 steals, and 0.7 blocks. His three shooting percentages are 45.5%+29.3%+78.3% respectively.

From the perspective of rookie standards, this stat sheet is not very bad, but under the halo of the top pick, it is difficult to call it a qualified report card. It is not even an exaggeration to say that this performance is even a bit of a struggle.

For a young rookie who is only 18 years old, the adjustment period from the NCAA to the NBA is not unexpected. Although some older rookies can quickly adapt to the NBA by relying on their rich NCAA experience, most rookies will still encounter a rookie wall period, and Flagg is no exception.

From the current perspective, the first problem facing the No. 1 pick is mainly the sluggish offense.

Perhaps due to the immaturity of the rookie, the No. 1 pick missed many simple scoring opportunities under the basket. Instead, he chose many mid-range jumpers that were not his advantage. A large number of unconventional shooting methods directly caused Flagg's shooting percentage to be unqualified.

Referring to the game against the Pistons in early November, it is a very obvious special case.

In the game, Flagg scored 14 points on 3 of 14 shots. His shots deviated many times, and he even made outrageous shots that could not even touch the basket. These phenomena also directly exposed that the newcomer still has a lot of room for improvement in shooting stability; in addition, as the main ball-handling attacker, Flagg's throwing shooting feeling near the frame also needs to be strengthened.

Of course, such a slump is not an unexpected exception. Looking back at when he first landed in the NCAA, his offensive status in the first ten games was also quite sluggish, with only 42%+22%+75% of his three shooting percentages respectively; and considering that he was placed in the point guard position by Kidd at the beginning of the season, which he is not good at, the ups and downs at this stage are not completely unacceptable.

From the perspective of head coach Kidd, he hopes to develop Flagg's potential as a point forward. Combined with his potential as the number one pick in the draft, from a longer-term development perspective, this is not a wrong choice.

At this stage, Flagg's basic movement control skills are indeed not enough to support him as a main point player in NBA-level confrontations. Long before landing in the NBA, Flagg had already exposed his shortcomings of unstable ball control in college. When faced with the intensity of the NBA, these problems will be directly amplified, causing the stability of the main ball handler to inevitably fluctuate, and instead giving opponents a large number of opportunities to switch counterattacks.

This is also the reason for his embarrassing statistics of 2.2 turnovers per game and an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.4. In addition to the player's own shortcomings, Flagg's struggling performance at the beginning of the season is also inseparable from the Mavericks' current offensive difficulties.

Based on the data, the Mavericks team's three-point shooting percentage is only 31.5%, the offensive efficiency is ranked second from the bottom in the league, and the average score of 110.3 points per game is also the third from the bottom in the league.

Especially after losing Irving, the team lacked a stable enough ball-holding point. Although the management has strengthened Russell in the offseason, so far, his average playing time is only 21 minutes per game. In addition to the ups and downs in offensive performance, his field control ability is still at a qualified level. If Kidd can try to increase his ball-holding value in subsequent games, there may be a chance to relieve Flagg's ball-holding organization pressure.

Although the start of the season was not smooth, for Flagg, the core potential and star mentality he has shown so far can at least make him worthy of the aura of the top pick.

For Flagg, his 213 wingspan condition is his biggest selling point in the draft. Even if his offensive potential has not been fully realized, he can still rely on his excellent wingspan and jumping talent to complete rebound protection and frame protection tasks, which at least retains a lower limit standard for him to be qualified.

At the same time, in addition to the current ball-handling offense that is not top-notch, Flagg has at least proven his value in receiving and finishing. He is also an excellent alley-oop creation point and is good at finding big men in the pick-and-roll to complete the offense.

Although the current passing force is sometimes too strong, which leads to the pass being too close to the basket and making it more difficult for the receiver to finish. But considering that he already has above-average passing vision, this is not a completely unsolvable problem for Flagg.

On the other hand, as a rookie player, Flagg's psychological quality is easily overlooked. Although he doesn't have many highlights, he has faced defenders and directly challenged the basket many times this season.

Although the overall success rate is not high, this attitude of having the courage to challenge the defense is naturally an absolute benefit for rookies who need to build confidence. Referring to Duke University's previous resume, Flagg is a player who performs better in big situations.

From a long-term perspective, after trading Doncic, the Mavericks have not completely gotten rid of injury problems. The two main players Irving and Davis are also missing due to injuries; for Flagg, this may also be a turning point in the crisis, which can give him more opportunities to show his potential and speed up his adaptation to the intensity of NBA games.

From a rational development perspective, the most appropriate choice for the Mavericks, who have the lowest record at the moment, is to stop and give the No. 1 pick a year to adapt. Then deal with Davis in the middle of the season, recruit a guard or 3D wing that does not overlap with Flagg's position, and match the performance of Christie, Gafford, Lively and others to develop a complete combat capability for the next season..

Overall, Flagg's early slump, although there is a personal adaptation period, is also closely related to the team's situation; however, given that Flagg has also fallen into a process of first low and then high at the beginning of the college season, coupled with the NBA's adaptation rhythm, and being placed in an unfamiliar position by the coach, it is obviously too early to prematurely define Flagg as the parallel import No. 1 pick.

For a rookie, the most important thing is to first develop his confidence in playing in the third and fourth positions he is accustomed to. When he can rotate in his accustomed position and build up enough confidence, he can then slowly develop his potential as a point forward. Perhaps this is the most stable and most suitable growth path for him.