Dennis Smith Jr., Mavs Agree to Contract, PG Was NBA Lottery Pick for Dallas in 2017

The Dallas Mavericks are signing veteran guard Dennis Smith Jr. to a one-year deal, according to ESPN's Shams Charania.

Smith, 27, was the team's No. 9 overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft but spent just parts of two seasons with the team, averaging 14.5 points and 4.9 assists across 101 games.

He has bounced around the NBA since in stints with the New York Knicks, Detroit Pistons, Portland Trail Blazers, Charlotte Hornets and Brooklyn Nets. He didn't catch on with an NBA team last season and briefly played overseas for Spain's Real Madrid.

Across his NBA career, Smith has averaged 9.7 points and 4.2 assists per game, shooting 40.7 percent from the field and 29.8 percent from three. But after averaging 15.2 points and 5.2 assists per game as a rookie, Smith steadily saw his production, and role, diminish with each passing stop.

In the 2023-24 season he made 56 appearances for the Nets (two starts) but averaged just 6.6 points in 18.9 minutes per game.

Because the Mavericks will be without Kyrie Irving for a chunk of the 2025-26 season as he recovers from a torn ACL, having depth at point guard makes sense for Dallas. While rookie Cooper Flagg might operate as the de factor playmaker for the time being and D'Angelo Russell will take Irving's spot in the starting lineup.

Dante Exum, Brandon Williams, and Jaden Hardy will also be fighting for roles off the bench, so even if Smith makes the team, he'll likely do so as a deep reserve. But the Mavs now have another potential option at point guard, a position that was the team's biggest question mark coming into the offseason due to Irving's injury.