MAVS NEWS:

[Smitty]

I’ve already said it - his BBIQ, defensive awareness, and court vision are already NBA ready enough to be 10-15 in the pecking order on an NBA main roster. I realize that’s the extreme position here, but I also know what the &@#% I saw in summer league play. 

Signing him to the main roster would be the right move, and allow him to continue to develop in the *correct* context. But it is hard to see how there’d be room for him.

I see your position, I do. I don’t want to be dismissive. I just see it way differently. Against folks in summer league he was just a guy (JAG). He’s our guy, so we’re hyper focused on what he did or didn’t do in each game. But if you asked any non-Mavs fan what they though of Ishchenko they’d say: “who”?

He’d be so far down the pecking order on this team, that it doesn’t seem fair to him in all honesty. They’ve already added 4 rookies - he would make 5. They’ve also added 4 other non-rookies that are 25 or younger that will need PT and development.

[Scott41theMavs]

I see your position, I do. I don’t want to be dismissive. I just see it way differently. Against folks in summer league he was just a guy (JAG). He’s our guy, so we’re hyper focused on what he did or didn’t do in each game. But if you asked any non-Mavs fan what they though of Ishchenko they’d say: “who”?

He’d be so far down the pecking order on this team, that it doesn’t seem fair to him in all honesty. They’ve already added 4 rookies - he would make 5. They’ve also added 4 other non-rookies that are 25 or younger that will need PT and development.

There’s a great discussion of this in the Discord with a lot more info. There are difficulties due to the buyout with stashing him on a Euro team, particularly because of the diplomacy issues now. There’s also the possibility of his taking care of his buyout on installments. It’s either just that, making the main roster, or stay warm and well fed languishing back in Russia.