Mavericks Notes: AD, Luka, Flagg, Nembhard, Cisse
Mavericks big man Anthony Davis slightly exceeded the minutes restriction he had Friday in his first game back following a 14-game absence, writes Tim MacMahon of ESPN. The star forward/center, who was facing the Lakers for the first time since the shocking February trade that sent Luka Doncic to Los Angeles and Davis to Dallas, faced immediate double-teams, ultimately finishing with 12 points, five rebounds, five assists and three blocks in 28 minutes.
“I thought he was good for his first game back,” head coach Jason Kidd said (story via Grant Afseth of Dallas Hoops Journal). “We’ll try to get the rhythm and try to get the flow of just being with those guys on the floor. I thought he was good on both ends. As we go forward and continue, as we talked about, to stacking good minutes, he did that.”
The Mavericks wound up losing by 10 points to fall to 5-15, the second-worst record in the Western Conference. Davis is optimistic the team still has time to turn its season around, Afseth adds.
“We’re still playing basketball, we’re trying to compete,” Davis said. “We are competing, we’re playing for each other, and we’re playing together. I remember when Brooklyn started off 5-20 and ended up at the four seed. I’m not saying we’re comparing ourselves to that or that we’re going to start off 5-20, but we just have to keep competing. There were just a couple of plays here and there that hurt us, but we can’t complain, we keep fighting. I feel like we’re right there.”
Here’s more on the Mavs:
- It’s been almost 10 months since Doncic was traded, but he says matchups against his former team will always be meaningful, Afseth writes in another story for Dallas Hoops Journal. “I would say it’s a little bit easier now,” Doncic said. “But games against Dallas always have some special meaning to me. I still have a lot of friends there. It’s important, it’s fun, and it’s always special. Like I say, it’ll always be special for me.”
- After the game, Mike Curtis of The Dallas Morning News asked Doncic for his thoughts on Cooper Flagg (Twitter video link). “I think he’s a good player,” Doncic said. “Obviously, there’s a lot of pressure that comes with (being) the first pick so he has a lot on his shoulders, but I think he will become a great player.” The 18-year-old rookie had 13 points, a career-high 11 assists and seven rebounds in the loss.
- Rookie Ryan Nembhard, who is on a two-way contract, received his first career start on Friday, as first reported by Marc Stein (via Twitter). The former Gonzaga point guard had a solid outing, recording 17 points (on 7-of-11 shooting) and four assists in 23 minutes. “They weren’t really guarding me,” Nembhard said, per Afseth. “They was trying to play off me and stand those gaps for AD and double him and make it tough on him. So a lot of open shots presented themselves and I’m just trying to be aggressive, get my teammates involved, and take advantage of the opportunity.”
- In a feature story for Ratings, Afseth details how undrafted rookie Moussa Cisse has become a valuable contributor for the Mavs. Like Nembhard, the Guinean center is on a two-way deal with Dallas. “He’s a bit undersized at the five, but he’s explosive and plays extremely hard,” a scout said. “He’s a bit further along than I expected, but there’s still plenty of work there. You can tell he’s still getting used to guarding NBA actions and talent — his angles can use some work. But he’s really dynamic rotating from the weak side and he’s going to crash the boards hard on both ends. I like his potential.”
Anthony Davis Upgraded To Doubtful For Monday
Anthony Davis has been upgraded to doubtful for the Mavericks‘ game against the Heat on Monday night, tweets Mike Curtis of the Dallas Morning News.
Curtis had noted earlier in the day (via Twitter) that Davis had joined the Mavs on their trip to Miami, and that today marks seven days since the team announced the big man would be re-evaluated in seven-to-10 days as he looks to return from the left calf strain that has caused him to miss the previous 13 games.
Davis has been the subject of much speculation in recent weeks following Dallas’ decision to part ways with former general manager Nico Harrison. While many have expected the personnel change to mark the start of a new era of Mavs basketball built around former No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg, minority owner Mark Cuban insisted that the club won’t try to trade Davis this season.
Other reports have indicated that proving he can stay healthy and leading the Mavs – who are currently 5-13 – to some wins would be determining factors in whether a team would be willing to put together the type of trade package that would force Dallas to consider dealing the incredibly talented but often-injured forward/center.
Davis is not the only player on the Mavs’ injury report, Curtis writes. Dereck Lively II is out with what the team calls right knee injury management, while guards Brandon Williams and Ryan Nembhard are questionable with lower back tightness and a left knee sprain, respectively.
Mavericks Notes: Flagg, Gafford, Nembhard, Washington
Unlike most No. 1 overall picks, Cooper Flagg didn’t wind up with a rebuilding team. Landing on the Mavericks gives him peace of mind entering his NBA regular season debut against San Antonio on Wednesday.
“We’re a really deep team, so I think that kind of takes that pressure off of me to just be myself and not worry about expectations to be like anyone else, but just to be me and help this team win as much as I can,” he told Mike Curtis of the Dallas Morning News.
Flagg believes Wednesday’s opener could be the start of something big for the team this season.
“Just being able to play my first real game obviously, but it’s the start of a great season and great journey with this team,” Flagg said. “I think we have a really good chance to be successful. Just really excited for it.”
Curtis goes in-depth on Flagg’s journey and potential impact on the league.
We have more on the Mavs:
- Daniel Gafford, who has been working his way back from a right ankle sprain, is listed as doubtful for Wednesday’s game, according to Grant Afseth of the Dallas Morning Journal. Head coach Jason Kidd said prior to the injury report coming out that Gafford would be listed as questionable. The big man has been ramping up activity after missing all of the preseason.
- Another player who had a much different journey than Flagg will make his NBA debut on Wednesday. Undrafted Ryan Nembhard, the surprise breakout player during the preseason, is expected to be in the rotation. He’s on a two-way contract. “He’s steady. Understands how to play the game,” Kidd told Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News. “Ryan is a point guard who has set the table in the games that we have put him in a different rotation spot.”
- P.J. Washington started regularly the past two seasons but the power forward will accept whatever role Kidd has in store for him, Townsend writes. “I’m just coming in and trying to win, doing everything I can to be successful and to help my teammates be in great positions to win,” he said. “So it doesn’t matter if I’m starting or coming off the bench. For me it’s all about winning.”
Mavericks Notes: Flagg, Nembhard, Robinson-Earl, Coaching Staff
Cooper Flagg, the top pick in the draft, started at point guard in the Mavericks’ last two preseason games. Will head coach Jason Kidd keep him there? It’s uncertain, but Kidd liked what he saw, according to Grant Afseth of the Dallas Hoops Journal.
“There’s a lot of good, positive stories here, and so we have some time to make a decision,” Kidd said. “But I think [Flagg] has done an incredible job of handling the situation of running the team. The other thing that I think is going unnoticed is that his teammates enjoy him running the team.”
Flagg averaged 12.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game across those two starts. The 6’8” forward struggled to defend the Lakers’ Gabe Vincent, who knocked down five three-pointers in the first five minutes on Wednesday.
“No matter if you’re 6-4, 6-2 or 6-8, when you’re in a pick-and-roll in this league against guys who know how to run the pick-and-roll, it’s hard,” Kidd said, per Tim MacMahon of ESPN. “It becomes a two-man game, and we’ll get better at that. But [with] his competitiveness, he’s going to figure it out sooner than later, and the more he’s in these situations, I think the long run he’s going to benefit.”
Here’s more on the Mavs:
- The summer addition of Ryan Nembhard on a two-way deal was met with little fanfare, but he could be part of the early-season rotation due to his strong preseason play, Afseth writes. Nembhard racked up 20 assists, compared to two turnovers, in 64 minutes. “He is steady,” Kidd said. “[He] understands how to play the game. Ryan is a point guard who sets the table. In the games that we have put him in a different rotation spot, he has had success finding guys. Even when we talk about misses, we’re getting great looks with him running the show. He is steady, gets us organized, and our pace does not drop off when he is at the point guard.”
- The team waived Jeremiah Robinson-Earl on Thursday but not before he made a strong impression on Kidd. “When you talk about him being a pro — he should be on an NBA roster,” Kidd told Afseth. “When you look at what he does, he’s consistent. He comes to work every day and does his job. He can shoot it, he can pass it, he can defend. It’s really sad that he’s not on an NBA roster for whatever reason.”
- The assistant coaching staff this season includes two former head coaches, Frank Vogel and Jay Triano, plus highly-respected Popeye Jones, Mike Curtis of the Dallas Morning News notes. They were all added during the offseason, with Vogel sporting the reputation of being a defensive mastermind and Triano considered an offensive savant. “We feel that we have a championship staff that can compete at a high level to help our younger players become the stars that we all think they can become,” Kidd said. In an interview with The Athletic’s Dan Woike, Vogel recalls leading the Lakers to a championship in the Florida “bubble” during the COVID-19 season.
Southwest Notes: Flagg, Hardy, Nembhard, Morant, Jackson Jr., Barnes
Cooper Flagg, point guard? At least for this week, that’s his spot. With D’Angelo Russell sitting out against Utah in the Mavericks’ preseason game on Monday, Flagg got the nod at the point in a jumbo lineup featuring P.J. Washington, Klay Thompson, Anthony Davis and Dereck Lively II, Marc Stein of the Stein Line tweets.
The Mavericks staff is eager to see what the No. 1 overall pick in the draft can do in different roles. Flagg responded on Monday with 11 points. He had just one assist but no turnovers.
“When you look at what Cooper’s done here, it’s been really good,” coach Jason Kidd said, per Grant Afseth of the Dallas Hoops Journal. “We’ve put him in different situations — running the offense, running plays, playing off the ball. There are things he has to improve. He’s not perfect yet, but being able to make plays and understand the game at a high level at 18 has been really cool to watch.”
Kidd plans to go with the same lineup against the Lakers, according to Afseth.
“You’ll probably see that group start again on Wednesday,” Kidd said.
Here’s more from the Southwest Division:
- Kidd used Ryan Nembhard, who is signed to a two-way contract, as the first point guard off the bench ahead of Jaden Hardy, Mike Curtis of the Dallas Morning News notes (Twitter links). Hardy has struggled in the preseason and Kidd wants him to be more than a scorer. “I think growth has to be able to not just score the ball. We know he can do that,” the Mavericks‘ head coach said. “Can he make plays for others? Can he get us set in the offense? Being able to compete on the defensive end. He’s going to get a great opportunity in preseason to show that he has grown.” Hardy signed a three-year, $18MM extension last year which kicks in this season.
- Grizzlies stars Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. are making good progress in their rehab from injuries, head coach Tuomas Iisalo said on Tuesday, per Damichael Cole of the Memphis Commercial Appeal. “Both guys are progressing really well and are able to do significantly more than one week ago,” Iisalo said. Morant is considered week-to-week with a sprained left ankle. Jackson is recovering from turf toe surgery. Neither has seen action in the preseason.
- Expect Harrison Barnes to remain in a starting role with the Spurs, Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News writes (subscription required). While head coach Mitch Johnson has yet to announce an opening night lineup, Barnes has not come off the bench in any game since the 2015/16 season. He enters his 14th season riding a streak of 304 consecutive games played. “I’m just trying to be out there for every game,” said Barnes, who has an expiring $19MM contract.
Southwest Notes: Thompson, Nembhard, Fears, Queen, Morant
Rockets wing Amen Thompson is viewed as a future star, and he believes playing alongside Kevin Durant will speed up his development. He talked about joining forces with one of the most productive scorers in NBA history during a recent Summer League interview with Vanessa Richardson of Space City Home Network (hat tip to Ben DuBose of Rockets Wire).
“He’s going to make my life a lot easier,” Thompson said. “He’s one of the greatest players ever, one of the best scorers ever. … Definitely going to be passing it to him a lot. They’re going to be double teaming him, so I’m going to be cutting off the back of it.”
Thompson was a first-team All-Defensive honoree in his second NBA season and finished fifth in the Defensive Player of the Year voting. He also showed improvement on offense, raising his scoring average to 14.1 PPG while shooting 55.7% from the field.
Thompson is looking forward to the influence Durant will bring to Houston as a veteran leader.
“I just hear his work ethic is different,” he said. “I feel like I have a different work ethic, too. Combining that, I think it’s gonna be fun.”
There’s more from the Southwest Division:
- The Mavericks are very happy with the Summer League performance of Ryan Nembhard, who signed a two-way contract after going undrafted out of Gonzaga, per Grant Afseth of Dallas Hoops Journal. He averaged 11.7 points and 6.7 assists in three games before being shut down and showed that he’s capable of running the offense. “You guys saw it,” Summer League head coach Josh Broghamer said. “Ryan didn’t have to prove anything else. Everyone knows we got a steal in him. He can play on the ball, off the ball, he’s going to be a hard-nosed defender — and we’re very excited about him going forward.”
- Pelicans rookies Jeremiah Fears and Derik Queen displayed their unique skills in Las Vegas, but they both have things to work on, observes Rod Walker of NOLA. Fears showed his quickness, elite handle and athleticism, but he didn’t finish well at the rim and only shot 18.2% from three-point range. Queen has a deft shooting touch and passing ability for a big man, but he battled turnover issues before sustaining a torn scapholunate ligament that required surgery and will keep him out of action until October.
- Grizzlies guard Ja Morant may not be off the hook in a lawsuit filed by a teenager he punched in 2022, according to Lucas Finton of The Memphis Commercial Appeal. A judge ruled in April that Morant couldn’t be sued because he acted in self-defense, but an appeal in the case is set to be heard in late August.
Southwest Notes: Spencer, Marshall, Nembhard, Wembanyama
In an exclusive interview with Mark Medina of Sportskeeda, Grizzlies guard Cam Spencer discussed the “shocking” trade that sent Desmond Bane to Orlando, how his competitive fire was stoked by growing up playing against older brother Pat Spencer, and what he has learned from Ja Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr., among other topics.
After spending his rookie season on a two-way deal with Memphis, Cam Spencer signed a four-year standard contract with the Grizzlies on Monday. The 2024 second-round pick is thrilled to have an opportunity to stay with the team long term.
“I’m super excited,” Spencer told Medina. “There’s no other organization that I’d rather compete with. I’m super grateful. It makes you think about all of the people that helped you get to this point. But I’m more motivated than ever. I told (general manager) Zach (Kleiman) that I’m going to prove him right every single day. I’m going to get after it for him.”
Spencer is also looking forward to a full season under new head coach Tuomas Iisalo, who had his interim tag lifted in early May.
“Coach Tuomas coming in, I think we have a lot of momentum going into this year,” Spencer said as part of a larger quote. “He’s been great. He’s a super-smart coach and very personable as a player. He really communicates what he wants from us out there on the court. I think we’re all going to be on the same page in a big way this year.”
Here’s more from around the Southwest:
- Mavericks wing Naji Marshall is coming off a 2024/25 season in which he averaged career highs in points (13.2), rebounds (4.8), assists (3.0) and steals (1.0) and minutes (27.8) per game, while shooting a career-best 50.8% from the field. However, Dallas failed to make the playoffs amid a wave of devastating second-half injuries. While the 27-year-old said he was “pretty good” last season, he believes he has “more in the tank he can accomplish” in ’25/26, according to Eddie Sefko of Mavs.com. “No question (that a deep playoff run is the next step). Just win,” Marshall said. “It’s beautiful. I feel good. I feel like we have all the right pieces to do what we all want to do. I’m looking forward to it.”
- After going undrafted out of Gonzaga last month, Ryan Nembhard quickly agreed to a two-way contract with the Mavericks. The 6’0″ point guard, who led all Division I players in assists last season, tells Christian Clark of The Athletic that signing with the Mavs wasn’t a coincidence. “They showed the most love (during the pre-draft process),” Nembhard said. “I think they really wanted me. They showed the most care for me. And I feel like I have a chance to come do something over here.” The 22-year-old averaged 11.3 PPG, 6.7 APG and 2.7 RPG in three Summer League games in Las Vegas.
- Spurs star Victor Wembanyama did kung fu training with monks at a Shaolin temple in China this offseason and believes the sessions helped him improve his “mental focus” and taught him “more about how to achieve optimal body positioning through a better range of movement,” sources tell Michael C. Wright of ESPN. The French center thinks the training will help him on the court as he prepares for his third season, Wright adds.
Ryan Nembhard Signs Two-Way Contract With Mavs
July 3: Nembhard’s two-way deal with the Mavericks is now official, the team announced in a press release.
June 26: Ryan Nembhard, who led all Division I players in assists last season, has agreed to a two-way contract with the Mavericks, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype tweets.
Nembhard, the younger brother of the Pacers’ Andrew Nembhard, logged 134 starts in college. He played two seasons with Creighton before transferring to Gonzaga, where he played two more years.
Nembhard averaged 10.5 points on 44.6 shooting, including 40.4 percent from long range, as a senior but he mainly concentrated on being a distributor. He averaged 9.8 assists and was also a factor on the defensive end with 1.7 steals. The 6-foot Nembhard reached double digits in assists 19 times last season, including 11 in his final college game — a loss to Houston in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
Nembhard is one of two undrafted rookies to reach an agreement on a two-way deal in the immediate wake of the draft, joining Auburn’s Miles Kelly.
Suns Notes: Durant Trade, Draft Workout
The Suns are not promising to move Kevin Durant to one of his preferred destinations, reports Marc Stein for The Stein Line (Substack link). Although Phoenix would like to find a win-win trade, the club is intent on acquiring the best return to position itself for a Durant-less future.
Given that the Suns surrendered much of their first-round draft pick equity as well as valuable players in Mikal Bridges and Cameron Johnson to bring Durant in, recouping as much value as possible is crucial as they attempt to reshape the roster on the fly around Devin Booker.
So while the Spurs, Rockets, and Heat are reportedly atop Durant’s wish list (the Knicks would have been too if they were serious about pursuing the star forward, Stein writes), the Raptors or any number of other wild-card teams could still be in play.
We have more from the Suns:
- Duane Rankin of Arizona Republic confirms Stein’s reporting, while adding that finding a balance between the team’s interests and doing right by the player can be important in a league that is increasingly star-driven. Another factor that Rankin says will play a big part is the pressure on newly elevated general manager Brian Gregory to impress ownership and fans with the trade return after the team underperformed dramatically last season.
- People in the league expect a Durant deal to happen as early as this coming week, reports Rankin. Rankin adds that the Rockets would appear to be the ideal destination for Durant, given their young, defensive infrastructure and bounty of both players and draft capital to use in a trade. However, the Suns have always had more interest than the Rockets in a Durant-to-Houston deal, Stein notes.
- Ryan Nembhard, brother of Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard, is set to visit the Suns for a pre-draft workout this week, according to Rankin. The Gonzaga guard, who averaged 10.5 points and an NCAA-leading 9.8 assists per game this season, is set to visit more than 15 teams during the pre-draft process, Rankin writes.
Draft Workouts: Jazz, Wolves, Kings, Broome
The Jazz are hosting a pre-draft workout on Friday featuring Colorado State wing Nique Clifford, North Carolina wing Drake Powell, Creighton center Ryan Kalkbrenner and Tennessee guard Chaz Lanier, multiple league sources tell Tony Jones of The Athletic (Twitter link).
Clifford is the top-ranked prospect of the group, according to ESPN’s big board, coming in at No. 22. Powell (No. 31), Kalkbrenner (No. 33) and Lanier (No. 37) are also viewed as strong bets to be drafted, either late in the first round or early in the second.
Utah currently controls four picks — Nos. 5, 21, 43 and 53 — in June’s draft.
Here are a few more notes regarding pre-draft workouts:
- The Timberwolves, who control the 17th and 31st picks, are holding a workout Thursday that includes Asa Newell (Georgia), Jamir Watkins (Florida State), Keshon Gilbert (Iowa State) and Steven Crowl (Wisconsin), reports Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News and SKOR North (via Twitter). Newell, who was invited to the green room, is ranked No. 21 on ESPN’s board, while Watkins is No. 39. The other two players are unranked.
- The Kings will be hosting six players for a workout on Friday, the team announced (Twitter link via Jason Anderson of The Sacramento Bee). The six are Ryan Nembhard of Gonzaga, Curtis Jones of Iowa State, Koby Brea of Kentucky, Kadary Richmond of, Norchad Omier of Baylor, and Vladislav Goldin of Michigan. All six prospects appear on ESPN’s board, ranging from No. 47 (Brea) to No. 95 (Omier). Sacramento currently only controls the 42nd pick, but is rumored to be interested in moving into the first round.
- Big man Johni Broome, the 40th-ranked prospect on ESPN’s list, had a workout with the Warriors today, tweets Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. The former Auburn star said he has previously worked out for the Clippers, Pistons, Hawks, Nets, Raptors and Celtics, and has upcoming workouts scheduled with the Thunder, Timberwolves and Suns, according to Rankin. Golden State controls the 41st pick.