Mavericks' former hyped fan favorite is falling apart with no signs of recovery

It was an explosive first two seasons for Dennis Smith Jr., as he had hopes of becoming the next great Dallas Mavericks point guard. Only Jason Kidd and Steve Nash stood in his way, and he had the entire city behind him. Smith Jr. was the No. 9 pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, and from the moment he was drafted, he had all of the hype in the world.

Mavs fans fell in love with his game due to his high-flying dunks, unreal athleticism, and knack for getting to the basket, but the young guard's dominance didn't last long in the NBA.

Now that Smith Jr. is in the G League and bouncing around, it appears there's no coming back to the NBA for him anytime soon. He had some hope over the offseason, as the Mavericks signed him to a training camp contract, but his NBA return never looked feasible. Dallas didn't have a roster spot to give away to begin with, and his impact was limited due to an injury.

Smith Jr. can't find a permanent home — and his NBA career is unraveling

Smith Jr. is currently with the Sioux Falls Skyforce, the Miami Heat G League affiliate, after being waived by the Wisconsin Herd, the Milwaukee Bucks' G League affiliate. Being passed around the G League is not a great sign for the 28-year-old guard, and it's now been 667 days since he last played in a regular season game with the Brooklyn Nets.

It seems like teams are passing on the once-hyped Dunk Contest participant, and the fact that he has played in both the EuroLeague and the G League over the last few years without landing a standard deal with an NBA team is a bit concerning for him. He tried to stick with Dallas for the long haul earlier this season, but that didn't work out.

This is after he was waived before the season started, thanks to limited minutes and a lack of 3-point shooting.

Even though Smith Jr. was the fan favorite that everybody wanted back before this season began, D'Angelo Russell was already seen as the primary backup. Now, it's a completely different story in Dallas' backcourt thanks to the rise of Brandon Williams and Ryan Nembhard. Smith Jr.'s career may unfortunately come to an end sooner rather than later.

This would be another former Mavericks guard whose career has gone south quickly.

Josh Green is in the bottom half of the Charlotte Hornets' rotation despite being a hyped rotation player in Dallas who helped them reach the 2024 NBA Finals. Green isn't in the G League yet, but it may not be long with Charlotte going in a younger direction thanks to their young, electric players like Kon Knueppel, LaMelo Ball, and Brandon Miller. Miles Bridges is also in that rotation, so it's another reason for Green to sit on the bench.

Smith Jr. is under a heavy guard rotation with the Miami Heat, as he likely hopes that he can land a standard contract with them at some point this season. That's thanks to Tyler Herro, Davion Mitchell, and Norman Powell. It'd be tough to say that Smith Jr. can get actual minutes even if he did land a contract to play some NBA reps later this season.

Smith Jr.'s best season to date was his rookie season with Dallas. He averaged 15.2 points per game and played his career-high of most games played in a season with 69. He's also credited with starting in every game that he played in for the only time in his career.

But in the middle of his sophomore season, he was traded to the New York Knicks for Kristaps Porzingis. With New York, Smith Jr.'s career started to turn for the worse. After a short stint with the Detroit Pistons, Charlotte, Portland Trail Blazers, and Brooklyn Nets, Smith Jr. basically became a journeyman with little to no hope of reviving his career.

There was a time when Smith Jr. fit the image of a future star, but the Mavs needed to give up an electric piece to get Porzingis. It's safe to say that trade didn't pan out as the Mavs fans had hoped, but for Smith Jr.'s career, he was on the wrong end of it. Those days are long over now, and it was the cold, hard truth for Mavs fans that their once fan favorite was no longer what he once was.

It also highlights a harsh reality, showing how tough the NBA is. The average NBA lifespan is 4.8 years, but Smith Jr. has exceeded those expectations, just not like how he expected. Mavs fans want the best for Smith Jr., but with him having a hard time finding a permanent home, it's clear that his best days are way behind him.