Mavericks are playing a dangerous game with rising fan-favorite rookie's future

The Dallas Mavericks' two-way unit, headlined by Ryan Nembhard and Moussa Cisse, has been absolutely amazing from the opening tip of the season. Not only has Nembhard played himself into a starting role on a nightly basis, but Cisse has surprised fans with how pro-ready he looks; however, it's already clear the Mavericks are running out of enough games to play Cisse in.

Under current two-way contract rules, players who sign a two-way deal with any team are restricted to being active for 50 regular-season games, and Cisse has been active in 27 of his 50 already (every game so far), with 55 games remaining on the schedule. Not only does this put the Mavericks at a major disadvantage later in the season, considering Dereck Lively II is already out for the season, but the Mavericks have had a clear reliance on the former Memphis Tiger.

For Nembhard, there is already a clear plan in place to eventually get him on the active roster, whether that's by trading more players than the team will receive or by waiving someone like Dante Exum, but it's harder to create two open roster spots to sign Cisse as well. It would be a hard pill to swallow, but the Mavericks may need to take a 10-game absence on Cisse or send him to the G League, where he could play on a near-nightly basis with the Texas Legends.

Mavericks are already running out of games for Moussa Cisse

There's no doubt that this rookie class for the Mavericks has been one of their most impressive in recent memory. Cooper Flagg recently became the only 18-year-old in NBA history to score more than 40 points in a game. Nembhard has been an absolute stud all season long, followed by Cisse, who has been impressive on both ends of the floor as a center.

Not only have all three already emerged as fan-favorites, but for Nembhard and Cisse in particular, they will be hard-capped at a 50-game threshold that they can appear in. For Nembhard, the path to a standard contract is a little clearer and a priority for the Mavericks, but Cisse has been left out to dry.

With the current center situation in Dallas, the Mavericks have had to rely heavily on the big man from Memphis, having played him in 19 games already, but if the Mavericks want to hold Cisse until the end of the season, they'd better start watching his game limit over the next 20-30 games. No doubt having Cisse on the floor has helped out immensely as he brings so much energy, but the Mavericks can't afford to burn through his 50-game limit so early into the season.

Health has had a lot to do with having Cisse on the floor so much, as just about every center on the roster outside of Dwight Powell has missed time. No matter how good Cisse has looked, the Mavericks can't afford to just burn through his two-way contract. It would be a hard reality to open two roster spots for both Nembhard and Cisse, but if there was any chance the Mavericks had at making that a possibility, they better take it.