Throughout his entire career, Anthony Davis has said he is a natural power forward. While many believe the big man is perfectly suited for the center position, Davis has been adamant that he belongs in the ‘four‘ spot to play his best game, even in his new home on the Dallas Mavericks.
Though he’s had success as his team’s sole big man, Davis was vindicated during his run to win the Finals with LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, in which he played alongside another seven-footer, that being Dwight Howard and Javale McGee.
But now in Dallas, Davis is still hoping to continue his career-long goal of staying a power forward. For now, the Mavericks appear on board with that plan, but it could spell disaster as the season goes along.
Anthony Davis’ PF Dream Might Not Work
Sam Quinn of CBS Sports highlighted why Davis’s urge not to play center could have a drastic impact on the Mavericks this season.
Though they have two other centers in Dereck Lively and Daniel Gafford, either of them on the court with Davis results in a lack of shooting that could be detrimental in this era of the NBA.
“Anthony Davis is a center. I know that. You know that. Everyone but the Dallas Mavericks seem to know that,” Quinn wrote. “Unfortunately, the Mavericks are the ones making the decision here, so the expectation here is that Davis will start alongside a center, either Dereck Lively or Daniel Gafford, immediately giving Dallas two big men who aren’t real threats from 3-point range.”
The Mavericks do have Klay Thompson for shooting, and will likely start D’Angelo Russell at point guard while Kyrie Irving recovers.
However, even with them on the court with rookie Cooper Flagg, Dallas is left without multiple threats from outside. Thompson remains their strongest shooter, but a potential lineup like this would likely force Davis and Flagg to take more three-point shots than head coach Jason Kidd would like.
The question then arises of defense, and with Davis in the game with another big man, the Mavericks don’t expect to struggle much on that end. But when it comes to weighing the impact of all these players on both sides of the court, Dallas will have to decide on what they deem more important.
“The Mavericks could address all of this by playing Davis at center. He and Flagg as the front court would still be a dominant defensive pairing,” Quinn added. “(But) they’re committed to this double-big alignment. That’s going to create deficiencies elsewhere on this extraordinarily unbalanced roster.”
Mavericks Testing New Lineups, Cooper Flagg At Point Guard
Even in the face of Quinn’s concerns, as well as others, Kidd seems to share the same thoughts, and so far through preseason has tested multiple Mavericks’ lineups that he hopes will prove impactful over the course of the season.
Most recently, he decided to start Flagg at point guard in the team’s latest exhibition game. The rookie didn’t show out, finishing with 11 points, seven rebounds, and one assist on 3/13 shooting in 21 minutes, but showed signs as a lead playmaker in the future.
Quinn wrote about the possibility of Flagg taking the ball up the court for Dallas, before the news was announced that he would play point guard. With all the lineup combinations available for Kidd, as well as Davis’ continued interest in playing power forward, Flagg will likely be a huge factor in the Mavericks‘ future lineups.
“Again, there’s a possibility that Flagg just solves this. There have been some rumblings about him playing point guard, and if he can do that, it solves some problems for Dallas,” Quinn wrote. “But it’s likelier that his doing so is a developmental tactic that helps down the line than an immediately beneficial short-term strategy.”
In his start at point guard, Dallas also trotted out P.J. Washington, Davis, Lively, and Thompson in their latest preseason starting lineup, for what was likely one of the tallest starting groups in recent memory. But with that lineup unlikely on opening night, Kidd says he liked that group and the multiple options he has going forward.
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