Mavericks two-way signee Ryan Nembhard has NBA model: his older brother Andrew

New York Times

a day ago

The January 2021 meeting between Montverde Academy and IMG Academy was stuffed with star power.
Montverde had future NBA lottery pick Jalen Duren and eventual pros Dariq Whitehead and Caleb Houstan on its roster.
IMG, meanwhile, put two future NBA lottery picks, Jarace Walker and Jett Howard, on the floor, and started another soon-to-be pro, current Charlotte Hornets center Moussa Diabaté.
Advertisement
'Between us and IMG, we had like nine guys in the top 50,' said Kevin Boyle, who was Montverde's boys basketball coach for 14 years. 'I'm like, 'The best guy in the gym is Ryan Nembhard. And he's the only one not ranked.''
In Boyle's eyes, that meeting between the two Florida prep school powerhouses was more proof that Nembhard was not to be underestimated. The Aurora, Canada native was his usual rock-solid self, notching 10 points, five rebounds and four assists. Montverde hung on to beat IMG 55-51, part of its 24-1 season.
Nembhard played two years at Creighton and then two years at Gonzaga. As a senior in Spokane, Wash., he led the nation in assists. His 181 assists in West Coast Conference play were a conference record. He racked up nearly four assists for every one turnover.
Nembhard is allergic to making low-percentage plays, but his size prevented him from being a first-round pick. At the NBA Draft Combine, Nembhard was measured at 5-feet-11, sans shoes, while weighing 176 pounds.
In June, Nembhard agreed to sign a two-way contract with the Dallas Mavericks in undrafted free agency. Through three games at NBA Summer League, he has been a steadying presence, averaging 11.3 points (40.6 percent shooting) and 6.7 assists.
'I've been kind of dealing with it my whole life,' Nembhard said about being an undersized guard. 'I am who I am. I'm not going to grow much more. I'm just looking to build on this opportunity I'm getting. At a certain point, the height won't be talked about anymore. At the end of the day, you just have to roll the ball out and play hoops.'
Nembhard tries to emulate other diminutive guards such as Chris Paul, Kyle Lowry and Fred VanVleet. Defensively, Nembhard likes what he sees from New Orleans Pelicans pest Jose Alvarado, who picks up ballhandlers full court and stays attached to their chests once they cross the half-court line.
There's one other player Nembhard models his game after, too.
Advertisement
'Obviously, my brother,' he said.
Andrew Nembhard is three years older than Ryan. The Indiana Pacers took him with the 31st pick in the 2022 NBA draft. A 6-foot-4 combo guard, Andrew has become an essential part of a Pacers team that advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals a year ago and were one win away from being crowned NBA champions in June.
Ryan attended Game 7 of the NBA Finals in Oklahoma City. As gut-wrenching as it was to watch Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton go down with an Achilles tear in the first quarter, Nembhard was still proud that his older brother's team had the 68-win Thunder on the ropes before the injury.
'Everyone thought Indy was going to be out and it was going to be a quick series,' Nembhard said. 'They showed their fight.'
Boyle coached both Nembhard brothers at Montverde. Before the 2022 NBA Draft, he warned teams not to discount how much Andrew could impact a game's outcome. Before this year's draft, he was spreading a similar message about Ryan.
'With Andrew, I was telling so many teams to draft him and take him,' Boyle said. 'About three teams came to me and said, 'We should have took him.' Both brothers are elite at decision-making and knowing how to play.'
In the Mavericks' first Summer League game against the Los Angeles Lakers, Nembhard showed his savviness. He played on and off the ball, with Dallas giving heavy point guard reps to No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg. Nembhard finished with 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting and five assists. While he had a bad game against the San Antonio Spurs two days later (scoring two points on 1-of-10 shooting), Nembhard rebounded Monday against the Charlotte Hornets, tallying 11 points and eight assists in Dallas' loss.
'He has such a command of the game and command of the floor,' said Mavericks assistant Josh Broghamer, who's coaching Dallas in Las Vegas. 'He's always going to have those guys set. Where he wants them to be. And he's already reading that second, that third layer of the defense before he comes off (the screen).'
Advertisement
Nembhard faces an uphill battle in the NBA because of his size. But the Canadian pick-and-roll maestro has a chance to make an impact in the league because of his headiness.
Kyrie Irving is expected to be sidelined for most of the upcoming season while he recovers from a torn ACL. The Mavericks signed D'Angelo Russell — another former Montverde player — to fill in at starting point guard in Irving's place. Behind Russell, the Mavericks have Dante Exum, Brandon Williams and potentially Nembhard, depending on how quickly he can adapt.
'They showed the most love (during the predraft process),' Nembhard said. 'I think they really wanted me. They showed the most care for me. And I feel like I have a chance to come do something over here.'