DALLAS, TX – The 2022 NBA Draft was in Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. The Dallas Mavericks announced two weeks before the draft that they were going to trade their No. 26th overall pick in the first round to the Houston Rockets in return for Forward Christian Wood and four of Dallas’s players: Boban Marjanovic, Sterling Brown, Trey Burke, and Marquese Chriss.
Dallas drafted Wendell Moore for the 26th overall pick. Moore was then traded to Houston as a part of that Christian Wood deal and then Houston traded him to the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Mavericks had the second round pick no. 54 but that was given to Washington back in February in the trade deadline deal that sent Kristaps Porzingis to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Spencer Diniwiddie and David Bertans.
Spencer Dinwiddie was huge for Dallas along the stretch of the end of the regular season as well as helping the Mavericks make a late playoff run to the Western Conference Finals.
“Other teams are going to come back better. I don’t think there’s a guarantee. Our goal is to come back better and give ourselves an opportunity to do what we do. There’s no guarantee.” General Manager Nico Harrison said that he liked the plan that they had come up with. Harrison stated that they will not try to grab a pick in the draft unless it is a player that they really want.
Late in the second round Dallas realized Jaden Hardy was still up for grabs as the second round continued to get deeper and deeper. The Sacramento Kings drafted Hardy at round two: pick no. 37. The Mavs then made a trade deal to acquire Hardy, the 19-year-old shooting guard from the G league team Ignite, in return for two future second round picks in the 2024 NBA Draft as well as the 2028 NBA Draft.
“We were really shocked that he kept slipping.” GM Nico Harrison said that he definitely had him higher than pick 37.
Hardy was a five-star recruit and ESPN ranked him the top guard in the country. He was ranked No. 2 overall in the recruiting class in 2021. Hardy was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. He then went to Coronado High School in Nevada where he averaged 30.4 points per game, 9.1 rebounds, and 8.4 assists which led him to a Nevada gatorade player of the year.
After high school Hardy played for the G league team Ignite. He was the top scorer for his team in 2021-22 averaging 19.8 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 3.5 assists.
Hardy is seen as an offensive threat with his ability to create shot opportunities and his craftiness with the ball.
previous post
