Nembhard's 23‑assist night
Rookie Ryan Nembhard set a Mavericks single‑game assists record with 23, breaking Jason Kidd’s previous mark of 17 (x.com). He paired those 23 assists with 15 points, nine rebounds and two steals in the same game, per the social report of the performance (x.com).
Ryan Nembhard closed his rookie season by handing out 23 assists for Dallas, the most ever by a Mavericks rookie in one game. (nba.com) The 23 assists came in a 149-128 win over the Chicago Bulls on Sunday, April 12, and broke Jason Kidd’s previous rookie franchise mark of 17 from the 1994-95 season. (nba.com) Nembhard added 15 points, nine rebounds and two steals in 38 minutes, finishing one rebound short of a triple-double in the regular-season finale. (nba.com) Dallas said the total was also the most assists by any Mavericks player in a regulation game. Kidd still owns the overall single-game franchise record with 25 assists, set in a double-overtime game against Utah on February 8, 1996. (nba.com) The game landed at the end of a difficult Dallas season. Basketball-Reference lists the Mavericks at 26-56, 12th in the Western Conference, with the Bulls game as their final regular-season result. (basketball-reference.com) Nembhard’s record came with other rookies filling major roles. The Associated Press game story said John Poulakidas scored 28 points, while Moussa Cisse had 17 points and 20 rebounds to tie Roy Tarpley’s rookie club rebounding mark. (abcnews.com) Cooper Flagg, the top pick in the 2025 draft, left the same game after 10 minutes with a sprained left ankle, according to the Associated Press recap. That pushed more of Dallas’s playmaking load onto Nembhard in the finale. (espn.com) Nembhard arrived in Dallas after going undrafted in 2025, and NBA.com lists him as a 23-year-old guard. His 23-assist night gave the Mavericks a season-ending record from a first-year player who was not selected in the draft. (nba.com; realgm.com) For one night, the franchise’s rookie assist record moved from the coach on the sideline to the point guard on the floor. Nembhard finished the year with the kind of stat line that usually belongs to established starters, not a first-year reserve guard in Game 82. (statesman.com)
