Ryan Nembhard, the undrafted two-way point guard out of Gonzaga who has darted up the Dallas Mavericks’ depth chart all the way to the role of starting point guard, is the feel-good story of the Mavs’
2025-26 season, no doubt.
From draft night in June, when he watched all 30 teams, most of them twice, opt for someone else over him, to starting the last six games for the Mavericks, who were reportedly the only team to promise his representatives that signing with them guaranteed Nembhard at least a two-way contract with the team, Nembhard’s presence in the backcourt has transformed the Dallas offense from cellar-dwelling into an efficient unit all suddenly able to hold onto the ball with the best teams in the league. After averaging 17 points and more than seven assists per game in his first four starts, he’s come back to earth in his last two games but has still played well enough, scoring 10 points and dishing four assists in Friday’s 132-111 loss at the Oklahoma City Thunder before tallying 11 and seven in Saturday’s 122-109 win over the Houston Rockets.
Maybe the Mavs should have started Nembhard at the point from the start of the season after all.
NBA insider Marc Stein reported on Friday, as part of a larger feature on Nembhard’s unlikely path to his starting role, that the Mavericks “have already committed to converting Nembhard to a standard contract as soon as they can.” Nembahrd has already cemented himself as the Mavs’ best passer, and the team’s turnovers have gone down from more than 16 per game to just over 11 in his six starts.
Without converting his contract, Nembhard would only be eligible to play in 38 more regular-season games with the Mavericks under his current two-way deal, and the rookie would become a restricted free agent after this year.
But the Mavericks are just about $1.3 million under the dreaded second salary cap apron as currently constructed. Dallas would likely have to waive Dante Exum in order to get Nembhard onto a standard deal and can’t do so before Jan. 6. Exum experienced complications stemming from surgery on the knee he injured last season, and earlier this month it was reported that the knee would require a second surgery, ending Exum’s 2025-26 season before he saw even one minute on the floor.
The kid has proven he can play, and the Mavericks have a definite need at point guard, so the reported move makes sense. Keeping him on the roster at an affordable rate for next season is obviously preferable to having to post an offer for Nembhard in the offseason, and this season, depending on Kyrie Irving’s return timetable from his own knee injury, Dallas may need Nembhard for more than the 50 games he would be eligible for under his two-way deal.
But how much of a lather should fans work themselves into over the surprising youngster?
Nembhard is not going to continue to shoot 61.2% on 3-point attempts, as he has in his first six starts (15-of-22), through the end of the year. His passing and the ball security that come with his pure point guard skillset figure to have a more permanent impact on the Mavericks moving forward.
And, when and if Irving returns this year, what will Nembhard’s role be? Is he the point guard of the future, or would that tag fall to Brandon Williams, last year’s exciting two-way prospect turned feel-good signing? Or, is one of them destined to be the backup for whoever the Mavericks get in the 2026 NBA Draft?
There are at least a couple of bridges to cross before we get there. For now, Nembhard is a big enough part of what makes the Mavericks interesting again, as the team has rattled off four wins in the team’s last five games, to simply be appreciated.
