Ryan Nembhard, the ideal moderator for the Mavericks

Being the best passer in the NCAA has rarely been a guarantee of success in the NBA in recent years. Tyler Kolek is just starting to emerge for the Knicks after playing very little during his rookie season. Yuri Collins (best passer in 2021/22 and 2022/23) played only two small games with the Warriors. Jalen Moore (8.4 assists in the 2020/21 season) then shone in… Iceland or Hungary.

As for Cameron Langleytransient leader in 2019/20, never took a step towards the professional world. For Ryan NembhardtThe NCAA’s No. 1 passer last season, but undrafted, the road seemed destined for the same kind of pitfalls. However, the opposite has been happening in Dallas for the past week.

Integrated into Jason Kidd’s top five after unsuccessful attempts that led Cooper Flagg to the starting lead, then more difficult attempts with D’Angelo Russell or Brandon Williams, the Canadian changes everything. On Wednesday against the Heat, he recorded his second consecutive double-double (15 points, 13 assists) and The Mavericks won their third straighttheir first series of the season.

The return of Anthony Davis obviously played a big role as well. But the playmaker’s impact, while still under a “two-way” contract, is equally transforming the face of the Texas franchise.

Peaceful “calm down” in a 22-year-old kid

Against Miami, seven players finished with ten points or more (Cooper Flagg, Naji Marshall, Anthony Davis, Klay Thompson, Ryan Nembhardt, D’Angelo Russell and Max Christie), led by the mastery of their young leader. The Gonzaga alum served up five different teammates for his first five assists of the night.

“The ball is moving, and you’ve seen what Ryan brings to the offense.”Jason Kidd greeted at the entrance to the press conference. “His quality of passing, his ability to score, then get back into the organization… He only lost one ball tonight, and I’m sure that annoys him. But it brings us this peace.”

Same story with Cooper Flagg, already won. “Ryan is the type of player that is very easy to play with. He just makes others better. When he plays like he did in the last two matches, he is full of confidence, and that’s what you have to do. I like to grow with him. We haven’t had a lot of minutes together since the start of the season, but it’s already a real pleasure.”

After his near perfect performance On Monday in Denver (28 points on 12/14 shooting, 10 assists, no turnovers), Ryan Nembhardt once again came close to excellence against the Heat. If he didn’t reach the same scoring heights, his 11 points in less than three minutes in the second quarter, along with a perfect 3/3 on 3-pointers, allowed the Mavericks to take a lead they never relinquished.

RICHIM pic.twitter.com/g8gj9EaKSMk

— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) December 4, 2025

“It’s not that hard to keep going because we knew we had this game against the Heat tonight, big poster”put Ryan Nembhard into perspective, away from excitement. “That’s what the NBA is: you have to be consistent. If you do it just one night, it doesn’t mean anything. So it’s easy to come back down to earth.”

An extremely rare example for a beginner

You had to go back to 1967 to find traces of an undrafted rookie coming off two games with at least 15 points and 10 assists. Ryan Nembhard is even the first rookie in history to average 20 points and 10 assists in two games while losing just one ball.

“My confidence? It’s very high”he assumes. “She always has been. I feel like I do the necessary work every day, and when you do that, you can rely on it, go on the floor and play freely. I just try to make good reads. We have a very talented group: give them the ball in the right place, at the right time, and they will do the rest. »

It looks simple. To the point of forgetting that, on paper, it should just be an enticing bet for the Mavericks. At this rate, the franchise will have to rethink its plans: with his “two-way” contract, Ryan Nembhardt is only eligible for 50 games, although he already seems to have earned his place, both on and off the field.

His complicity with other beginners and his understanding with managers are regularly highlighted. “At the end of the day, if I do my job at a very high level, the rest will follow in due course”breathes the 22-year-old leader.

And now, the Thunder and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander test

Real discomfort was more likely to arise among his opponents, as the Heat seemed helpless to slow him down. Erik Spoelstra already joked about it before the meeting.

“Nembhard… I never want to hear Mark Fi tell me about any of the Nembhards again”he said, with a smile on his face, when referring to the Gonzaga coach’s constant lobbying to land Ryan or his older brother Andrew in Miami. “He’s been talking to me about Nembhards for years, he almost bullied me into getting one. He’s the prototypical Gonzaga-educated player, and you can’t help but love those kinds of competitors. He’s got a tremendous competitive spirit. We love these kinds of stories: two-way guys breaking through. And he’s doing it in competition, fero ‘town.

The Mavericks can only rejoice. And Ryan Nembhard is already looking toward what looks to be the ultimate test for the contender: challenging the reigning champion, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s Thunder, on Friday.

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How to read statistics? MJ = matches played; Min = Minute; Shots = Shots Successful / Shots Attempted; 3 points = 3 points / attempt 3 points; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive jump; Tot = Total number of jumps; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal mistakes; Int = intercepts; Bp = lost balls; Ct: Against; Points = Points.