‘Everyone knows we got a steal’… Dallas Mavericks coach thrilled with Summer League sensation’s performances

Ryan Nembhard impressed Mavericks coach

The Mavericks were certainly the happiest to be able to draft Flagg with the first pick, but they also managed to grab a fantastic undrafted player in Ryan Nembhard.

Brother of Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard, the 22-year-old played for Gonzaga in college and was the assist leader for the NCAA tournament in the 2024-25 season.

Despite his exploits in college, Nembhard went undrafted, but the Mavericks saw the talent in him and signed him to a two-way contract.

He averaged 11.7 PPG and 6.7APG in three games, which also included a 21-point performance against the LA Lakers.

Nembhard scored the clutch basket in that game to help the Mavericks secure an 87-85 win.

After three games, Nembhard was shut down for the Summer League and coach Josh Broghamer revealed the reason behind it.

When Broghamer was asked the reason behind shutting Nembhard down after three games, he said: “You guys saw it, Ryan didn’t have to prove anything else.

“I think everyone knows we got a steal in him, and he can play on the ball, off the ball, he’s gonna be a hard-nosed defender, as much as anything, and so, we didn’t need to see anything else from him because we know what we got with him and we’re very excited about him going forward.”

Ryan Nembhard could play key role on Mavericks

The Mavericks are going into the regular season without knowing the return date of Kyrie Irving.

He suffered an ACL injury during the 2024-25 season and is expected to return at some point next year if his rehab goes right.

The team signed D’Angelo Russell as a temporary replacement, but Nembhard could play some valuable minutes off the bench.

Not only has he proven to be a great playmaker, but Nembhard also adds defense to the team.

Jason Kidd has a stacked roster with Flagg, Klay Thompson and Anthony Davis all set to take the court for the Mavs.

While Nembhard is a rookie, early signs are that he could see some minutes due to the dynamism the player adds to the backcourt.