Rising draft prospect made a strong case for why Mavericks should draft him

There's a ton of anticipation as to what the Dallas Mavericks will do with the No. 9 pick in the NBA Draft on June 24, and players in Dallas' range are already being vocal about how they'd enjoy being a Maverick, starting with Mikel Brown Jr., and now Kingston Flemings. When asked about how he'd think about getting drafted to the Mavericks during an interview at the combine, Flemings, who's climbing draft boards, raved about Dallas' situation.

He mentioned how valuable the tutelage of Kyrie Irving would be both on and off the court, and gave high praise to Cooper Flagg as well. Flemings also made it clear that he's willing to play any role, which should make the Mavericks extra interested in drafting him. They're trying to build a strong culture in Dallas around Flagg, and coming from Houston, Flemings has extremely high character.

"Definitely great," Flemings said when asked about fitting with Irving and Flagg. "Being somewhere like Dallas would definitely be great...Defense, offense, like I said earlier, I can do that."

Kingston Flemings has clear interest in the Mavericks drafting him

Most players in the pre-draft process aren't going to knock any potential landing spot. Still, it speaks volumes that Flemings really elaborated upon how landing in Dallas would be, as he even mentioned the new team president and alternate governor, Masai Ujiri. His full breakdown of the Mavericks may just seem like commentary, but his understanding of the team and willingness to play any role doubles as a great case for why Dallas should draft him.

Flemings measured shorter than expected at the combine at 6-foot-2.5 without shoes, and he only has a plus-one-inch wingspan, but he compensates for his lack of size in other areas tremendously. He had one of the best shooting performances of any prospect at the combine from 3-point range, and he jumped over 40 inches on the max vertical jump test.

He comes from a system at Houston that was one of the most tenacious defenses in all of college basketball under Kelvin Sampson, and spearheaded the Cougars at the point of attack by averaging 1.5 steals per game last season.

His athleticism leads the way to some dynamic finishes on the other end of the court, and he had efficient shooting splits of 47.6/38.7/84.5 last season, despite some scouts' concerns over his mechanics.

Flemings is an elite playmaker for only being 19 years old as well, as he averaged 5.2 assists per game last season, and his 4.1 rebounds per game speak to his relentless effort and ability to play above his size.

Flemings would become Dallas' point guard of the future next to Flagg

He fits the mold of the type of player Dallas would want to pair with Flagg at the point guard position for the long-term, and has the type of personality that would blend well with Flagg as well.

His athleticism and defense would give credence to him being able to play off-ball next to Irving in lineups sometimes as well, even if shooting guard probably isn't his natural position long-term. Flemings is also from San Antonio, so he'd be close to home if Dallas drafted him, which is always a huge plus in terms of Dallas' ability to retain him after his rookie deal.

The only downside is there's a solid chance Flemings gets drafted before Dallas at No. 9, as many mock drafts have him slated to go top seven. This would be a tough break for Dallas based on his clear interest in coming to DFW, as well as the fact that he had an elite combine performance, but they could package their 30th pick with No. 9 to try and move up a little if they really like someone like Flemings and have the premonition he'd be off the board by the time the ninth pick rolls around.

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