Rookie Nembhard’s 23 assists
Rookie Ryan Nembhard set a Mavericks rookie single‑game record with 23 assists while also scoring 15 points and grabbing 9 rebounds in a recent game. (x.com) The performance was highlighted in multiple game recaps and used as evidence of strong playmaking from young guards this late in the season. (x.com)
Ryan Nembhard closed the Dallas Mavericks’ season by handing out 23 assists, the most ever by a Mavericks rookie in one game. (apnews.com) The record came in Dallas’ 149-128 win over the Chicago Bulls on Sunday, April 12, at American Airlines Center. Nembhard added 15 points, nine rebounds and two steals in 38 minutes, and he finished plus-23. (nba.com) (usatoday.com) The previous Mavericks rookie mark was 17 assists, set by Jason Kidd in the 1994-95 season. Nembhard’s 23 assists were also the second-most in any game in franchise history, behind Kidd’s 25 against Utah in February 1996. (nba.com) (yournews.com) Nembhard reached the NBA after four college seasons, first at Creighton and then at Gonzaga, where he built a reputation as a low-turnover point guard. Dallas signed him after the 2025 draft, and he spent part of the season moving between the Mavericks and their developmental pipeline before finishing the year in the rotation. (gocreighton.com) (gozags.com) (sports.yahoo.com) The setting mattered. Dallas was already out of postseason contention, and the finale featured a short-handed roster after rookie Cooper Flagg left with a sprained left ankle in the second quarter. (espn.com) (apnews.com) That left the ball in Nembhard’s hands on possession after possession, and Dallas turned that control into 35 team assists and 22 made three-pointers. John Poulakidas scored 28 points, and Moussa Cisse had 17 points and 20 rebounds as the Mavericks finished 26-56. (usatoday.com) (espn.com) The game also fit a late-season pattern across the league, with eliminated teams using April minutes to test young guards in larger roles. In Dallas, that meant Nembhard ran the offense enough to threaten a triple-double while breaking a record held by his own coach. (usatoday.com) (sports.yahoo.com) For a team that ended the year near the bottom of the Western Conference, the final box score still delivered one clear data point: Dallas has a rookie guard who just produced 23 assists in an NBA game. (espn.com) (sports.yahoo.com)
