Dereck Lively II is first Maverick Player to earn Rising Stars Nod Since Luka Doncic

[SleepingHero]

Agreed. I love love love this kid. Was not sold on the pick at the time, but it was pretty evident as early as summer league that he had a prodigious basketball mind and IQ that would flatten his learning curve to a preposterous degree. Wonderful character and heart as well. Thank you, Nico and Lindsay, for Dereck freaking Lively II.

I still revisit that draft and how adamantly I was against Lively as a prospect. It wasn't until I watched his first march madness game in full did I see what Nico saw. That was well after the pick was made but I was seriously shocked at how good he was defensively. 

Goes to show how important it is to watch the games before you make a pick!