Mavericks' 7'5″ center takes pivotal Summer League step forward
DALLAS — The Dallas Mavericks will begin their 2K26 Summer League on Thursday against the Los Angeles Lakers. The highly-anticipated affair will feature players such as Cooper Flagg and Bronny James, however, Mavs center Jamarion Sharp is another player to watch. At 7'5″, Sharp's potential is especially intriguing. While speaking to reporters after practice on Wednesday, Mavs Summer League head coach Josh Broghamer revealed how Sharp has improved from last year's Summer League to this summer.
'The time and effort that he's put in… With the conditioning and just getting stronger,' Broghamer told reporters. 'That's something we saw last year when he came in, was he could do things for one or two possessions but not for longer stretches. That's something he's really, really worked hard on and improved on. Obviously Jordan Sears with the Legends (The Texas Legends are the Mavericks' G League team), and then up here he's been working with Riley Crean a lot. They've done a really good job of not only working on his skill set but just his ability to do things that he does really well for longer stretches.
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'You'll see over Summer League hopefully of him blocking shots, running the floor, impacting the game all by himself. And not just doing it once or twice where you're like, 'wow, that's something he can help us with.' Him doing it for longer stretches, which he's shown in practice the last couple days.'
Jamarion Sharp's bright NBA future
Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Sharp spent the 2024-25 season with the Legends. He displayed signs of potential in the G League. Sharp also displayed promise during last year's Summer League.
As mentioned, though, Broghamer and the Mavericks wanted him to develop more consistency in his game. It seems as if Sharp is ready to take that step forward. If he can play up to his potential for 'longer stretches' like Broghamer mentioned, Sharp could end up having a quality summer with the Mavs.
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'Just his conditioning and his ability to know what's coming and how to play,' Broghamer added later in reference to Sharp's improvement. 'I think our guys have done a really good job with the big fellas. They have a ton of athleticism and talent in that regard. And now it's just kind of the I.Q. and learning the system.
'College is obviously so much different and then the G League is obviously so much different from college which is different from the NBA. I feel like Sharp, just having that sense of what to expect and kind of the shots we're trying to force and what we're trying to live with, he's been really good… His strength and conditioning has gotten so much better where he can do it for longer stretches.'
It seems as if the Mavs believe in Sharp's talent. They just want to see him play at a consistent level for longer stretches of time. His ceiling is fairly high and Sharp could factor into Dallas' long-term plans.
Of course, and this is a notable point, but the Mavericks feature plenty of center depth on the current NBA roster. The chances of Jamarion Sharp immediately making an impact at the NBA level — even with a strong Summer League — are likely still slim. Nevertheless, he will give the team something to seriously consider by playing well over the next couple of weeks.
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Related: Mavericks' Klay Thompson-Megan Thee Stallion viral photo has fans speculating relationship
Related: Mavericks' Cooper Flagg's underrated skill gets honest claim from Summer League coach
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