DALLAS — Amid their efforts to quell expectations of dynamic 20-year-old Jaden Hardy, the Mavericks keep dropping hints that pique wonder and anticipation.
Such is the balance the franchise must find as fans and reporters ponder Hardy’s short- and long-term potential with Dallas beginning with its 2022-23 season Wednesday night in Phoenix.
On one hand, Hardy is raw and youthful and as the No. 37 pick in last June’s draft, it’s implausible to expect him to be a major contributor to a veteran team that advanced to last season’s Western Conference finals.
On the other hand, Jalen Brunson’s departure created a scoring and playmaking void and 6-4, 198-pound Hardy has provided enough glimpses in practices and preseason games to give the Mavericks hope that he someday will help that need.
Someday, as in when, though? Two years? Next season? Next month?
“He’s a steal,” said Mavericks center Christian Wood, who has closely followed Hardy’s progress since his senior year of high school.
“He’s good, he’s competitive, he talks a lot,” said Luka Doncic, adding with a smile. “Sometimes too much.”
When asked which players starred after his team’s intrasquad scrimmage on Wednesday, coach Jason Kidd didn’t hesitate: “Hardy” was the first word out of his mouth.
From veteran Maxi Kleber, “He has a lot of talent. Super-fast. Super-athletic. Great work ethic. Great guy. Super-humble.”
How slowly, or quickly, the Mavericks are able to ease Hardy into their offensive and defensive systems and in a larger sense the NBA way of life will be a compelling subplot this season. One thing Kidd knows for certain about the process is that it won’t be rushed.
When the season begins Wednesday, Hardy will be 20 years and 106 days old. Whenever he makes his NBA debut, he will surpass Dirk Nowitzki (20 years, 231 days) as the eighth-youngest Maverick to do so.
The fact that the list includes Nowitzki and Doncic, second-youngest at 19 years, 231 days, is perhaps reason for optimism, but that top eight also includes Bruno Sundov, Dennis Smith Jr., Josh Green, Pavel Podkolzin, Tyrell Terry and Donnell Harvey.
See where we’re going with this? Even Nowitzki struggled mightily as a rookie, averaging 8.2 points and shooting 40.5%. Only Doncic starred, earning NBA Rookie of the Year honors, but he had played professionally in EuroLeague since age 16.
“I think he’s in a great situation, where he can learn from vets,” Kidd said of Hardy, listing the names of several veteran Maverick perimeter players, but emphasizing one.
“He can also talk to a young Josh Green about understanding the ups and downs and how that makes you feel.”
Early lessons
Watching Hardy around Mavericks teammates, during practices and preseason games, his youthful face and perpetual smile make him stand out.
But with his fluid, near-textbook shooting delivery and electric athleticism, he without question belongs.
“I’m very comfortable out there,” he told The Dallas Morning News, smiling politely throughout the interview. “The coaches believe in me. Teammates believe in me. When they believe in you, that goes a long way.”
Hardy’s pro basketball education, preparing him for this rookie season that certainly will include hard knocks, began well before the Mavericks on draft night acquired his rights from Sacramento for two future second-round picks.
As a junior at Coronado High School in Henderson, Nev., he averaged 30.4 points, 9.1 rebounds and 8.4 assists and was considered one of the top recruits of the 2021 class, along with Chet Holmgren.
But while Holmgren committed to Gonzaga, where he played one season, Hardy opted out of half of his high school senior season, announcing in May that he would join the NBA’s G League.
Hardy’s shooting struggles (35%) while playing for the G League’s Ignite played a role in his plummeting from lottery pick consideration to out of the first round.
Consequently, while No. 2 overall pick Holmgren will make $9.9 million this season and $10.4 million next season, Hardy will make $1 million and $1.7 million.
The Mavericks, though, noticed how strongly Hardy finished his G League season and were shocked that he was available. Kidd said he is hopeful that playing in the G League provided somewhat of a “cheat sheet” for his NBA rookie season.
He also played for the Mavericks’ summer league team, pouring in 28 points in his debut, and spent much of the rest of the offseason in Dallas, working with Dallas assistants Sean Sweeney and Greg St. Jean, and scrimmaging with and against Mavericks teammates.
“We gave him the answers, and he’s digested it very well in the sense of trying to do what he can do, not trying to stretch his role,” Kidd said.
Teaching moments have been plentiful during training camp. For instance on the first day, when Hardy sped up court with no help and against several defenders and fired a jump shot.
“Some vets said ‘That’s not a good shot,’ " Kidd recalled. “And he didn’t react in a negative way. He took it and understood they were coaching him.
“That’s the kind of environment we have here.”
The road to Dallas
Hardy says that most of the questions he asks of players like Tim Hardaway Jr., Spencer Dinwiddie, Dorian Finney-Smith and Theo Pinson are about off-the-court life.
When he played for the Henderson, Nev.-based Ignite, he had support from his parents and older brother, Amauri, a former UNLV guard who signed with the Ignite before Jaden did.
During the summer, Amauri Hardy told The News that he thought his presence on the road and in games and huddles helped stabilize Jaden during his difficult transition.
“Coming off high school, he was the No. 2 player behind Chet Holmgren, so it’s definitely something he wanted to come out and prove himself,” Amauri said. “I wouldn’t say so much ‘pressure,’ but he probably wanted to come out and prove to everybody who he is.
“He ended up weathering the storm and having a good season. He took all the criticism and ended up building off of it and he got an opportunity to hear his name called.”
That happened much later on draft night than he fathomed, but Jaden says he has no regrets. He doesn’t have a luxury car, but he’s content with the Range Rover he bought last year.
Becoming a Maverick came with the nice coincidence that his older sister, Mariah, moved to Richardson several months earlier with her husband. But besides Richardson and Dallas, Jaden says the only North Texas places he’s been are Plano and to a Cowboys game in Arlington.
He’ll explore in time, but basketball is his focus. Sweeney is there to remind him, not that he needs it.
“He’s tough,” Hardy said with a smile, “but sometimes you need that. Somebody who’s going to push you, who cares about your development.”
Had Hardy been born a couple of years later, his NBA path might have been different. The NBA and Players Association are expected to discuss abolishing the one-and-done rule that requires players to be 19, or having spent a year in college, to be draft-eligible.
“I feel like the top, top, top kids, when they’re coming out of high school, might be ready to make that jump,” Hardy said. “I feel like a lot of young guys can come in early, get that experience and it’s going to help them grow and mature and get better.”
Not that long ago he was one of the top players in his age group. Whether or not he chose the wrong path that turned out to be less lucrative than he hoped, what matters now is that he’s here: A young Maverick with opportunity and, clearly, a lot of promise.
The journey should be fascinating.
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Staff Writer Callie Caplan contributed to this story.
