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**•Get the NBA App•Summer League: In-Depth Analysis**
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The clash in January 2021 between Montverde Academy and IMG Academy was filled with top talent.
Montverde featured Jalen Duren, a forthcoming NBA lottery selection, along with future professionals Dariq Whitehead and Caleb Houstan.
On the other hand, IMG showcased two prospective lottery picks, Jarace Walker and Jett Howard, while also starting current Charlotte Hornets center Moussa Diabaté, another player destined for the pros.
According to Kevin Boyle, who spent 14 years as Montverde’s boys basketball coach, “Between both teams, we had around nine players ranked in the top 50. Yet I think the best player in the gym was Ryan Nembhard, and he wasn’t even ranked.”
Boyle believed this matchup between two prominent Florida prep schools underscored Nembhard’s potential. Representing Aurora, Canada, he played a steady game, contributing 10 points, five rebounds, and four assists as Montverde narrowly secured a 55-51 victory against IMG, capping a 24-1 season.
Nembhard’s collegiate journey included two years at Creighton followed by another two at Gonzaga, where he topped the nation in assists during his senior year. He set a conference record with 181 assists in West Coast Conference play, achieving an impressive nearly four assists per turnover.
Not one to take risky plays, Nembhard’s height, however, worked against him in the draft. At the NBA Draft Combine, he measured 5-foot-11 without shoes and weighed 176 pounds.
In June, Nembhard signed a two-way contract with the Dallas Mavericks after going undrafted. Throughout the NBA Summer League, he has showcased his skills, averaging 11.3 points (with a shooting percentage of 40.6) and 6.7 assists over three games.
“I’ve been confronted with my stature my entire life,” Nembhard remarked regarding his position as a smaller guard. “I am who I am. Growth isn’t much of an option for me now. I’m eager to seize this opportunity. Eventually, the focus on height will diminish. In the end, it all comes down to playing the game.”
Nembhard strives to mirror the play styles of shorter guards like Chris Paul, Kyle Lowry, and Fred VanVleet, while admiring New Orleans Pelicans’ Jose Alvarado for his relentless defensive tactics, applying pressure on ball handlers from the full court and staying tenacious after crossing half-court.
There’s yet another influence on how Nembhard approaches the game.
“Of course, my brother,” he stated.
Andrew Nembhard, three years Ryan’s senior, was selected by the Indiana Pacers with the 31st overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. Standing at 6-foot-4, Andrew has become a vital member of a Pacers squad that reached the Eastern Conference Finals last year and came perilously close to winning the NBA championship in June.
Ryan was present at Game 7 of the Finals in Oklahoma City. While it was heartbreaking to see Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton suffer an Achilles injury in the first quarter, Nembhard felt pride in how his brother’s team challenged the 68-win Thunder prior to that misfortune.
“People expected Indiana to be out quickly in the series,” Nembhard noted. “But they displayed incredible resolve.”
Boyle had the opportunity to coach both Nembhard brothers at Montverde. Before the 2022 NBA Draft, he cautioned franchises not to overlook Andrew’s game-changing abilities. In the lead-up to this year’s draft, he shared similar sentiments about Ryan.
“With Andrew, I encouraged numerous teams to select him,” Boyle recounted. “A few teams later admitted, ‘We should have taken him.’ Both brothers excel in decision-making and understanding gameplay.”
In the Mavericks’ opener of the Summer League against the Los Angeles Lakers, Nembhard demonstrated his basketball IQ, alternating between on-ball and off-ball roles, while Dallas primarily fed point guard responsibilities to No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg. Nembhard concluded that game with 21 points on an 8-of-14 shooting performance and five assists. Despite a disappointing outing against the San Antonio Spurs two days later (where he only scored two points on 1-of-10 shooting), he bounced back with 11 points and eight assists against the Charlotte Hornets in a subsequent loss.
“He possesses an exceptional command of the game and the court,” commented Mavericks assistant Josh Broghamer, who is coaching the team in Las Vegas. “He always directs where he wants the players positioned. Plus, he’s already reading the deeper layers of the defense preemptively as he navigates off screens.”
While Nembhard faces a tough road in the NBA due to his dimensions, this Canadian orchestrator of the pick-and-roll has an opportunity to make a significant mark on the league thanks to his astute understanding of the game.
With Kyrie Irving expected to be out for a substantial part of the upcoming season due to recovery from a torn ACL, the Mavericks have enlisted D’Angelo Russell — another former Montverde player — to start in Irving’s stead. Behind Russell, the Mavericks have Dante Exum, Brandon Williams, and potentially Nembhard, depending on how swiftly he can adjust.
“They showed the most support during the pre-draft period,” Nembhard mentioned. “I believe they genuinely wanted me. Their care was evident, and I feel like I can come in and make a difference here.”
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Christian Clark writes about the NBA for The Athletic and is based in Dallas. He previously reported on the New Orleans Pelicans for NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune. You can follow Christian on Twitter @cclark_13.
