Jason Kidd's one demand may be creating the Mavericks' next unexpected star

Max Christie is finding his footing at the right time. One small step for Christie. One giant step for the Dallas Mavericks. His Swiss Army knife skillset has made him the Mavericks' jack of all trades on the court. And Coach Jason Kidd couldn’t be happier. Kidd said earlier in the season that he wanted to see more aggression from Christie, and the young stalwart has answered the call.

Christie has already carved a reputation as a talented defender. He's the modern 3-and-D player prototype.

So, Kidd bestowing more offensive responsibility on the 22-year-old seems like a natural progression in his career timeline. Not many players can make the transition from defensive ace to being a highly sought-after two-way player. But Christie seems more than up to the task. His even temperament and physical attributes make him an excellent candidate.

Christie is starting to show his full repertoire on offense

Christie ended the month of December with a masterful 25-point performance in a tough 125-122 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on December 29. However, the silver lining is that Christie was more aggressive, going 8-12 from the field and shooting a blistering 5-7 from downtown. Young Christie is starting to percolate.

It’s clear to everyone watching that Christie made a New Year's resolution to make Coach Kidd look like a genius for inserting him into the starting lineup in place of a legend like Klay Thompson. All Christie has done is average 21 points per game while shooting 65 percent from the field and a scorching 46 percent from 3-point land in January thus far.

Perhaps the biggest highlight of Christie’s season was a ferocious dunk he had in the last minute of the fourth quarter in a hotly contested win versus Kevin Durant and the Houston Rockets this past Saturday.

Christie caught the ball in the left corner at the 3-point line and used his triple-threat positioning to blow by his defender and effectively shut the door on the Rockets and snap the Mavs' four-game losing streak. Houston had to honor Christie's 3-point prowess, and he took full advantage in the clutch moments.

This is a player evolving right before our eyes, and Coach Kidd couldn’t be prouder. Kidd echoed those sentiments about how he liked what he was seeing from Christie so far as a starter.

“Being aggressive," Kidd said. "It's good to see him playing the way he has in those last two. Again, Naji didn’t do anything wrong, but we just needed to take a different approach, and Max responded.” 

Kidd sees that Christie has the ability to be used in multiple ways

This means Kidd sees a unique opportunity to use Christie in a myriad of ways.

If you watch the games, you can see the beautiful nuances of Christie’s game. His athletic 6-foot-5 frame gives him the size and mobility to switch and guard multiple positions on the perimeter. And on offense, he’s able to play on or off the ball while at the same time being a knockdown shooter from three. He’s proving to be a three-level scorer who can attack the basket with reckless abandon when the time calls for it.

What separates the average from good, and the good from great, is often the mental aspects of the game. Kidd has moved Christie in and out of the starting lineup throughout the season, and that can be disconcerting for a young player. But Christie has never complained and has done everything that’s been asked of him. But Dallas needs this version of Christie for the rest of the season and beyond.

Having multiple players like Christie, Cooper Flagg, and Anthony Davis on the floor gives Dallas a multi-pronged attack on offense (that’s less predictable) and multiple defenders who can switch or guard head-up in crunch time when they need a stop. This bodes well if they can regain the team’s momentum until Kyrie Irving returns.

Christie has shown he’s capable. We know he’s willing. Now it’s time for him to show the league that these type of performances will be the norm and not an aberration.

Max Christie meets his max potential. It’s got a nice ring to it.