Dallas Mavericks sign young wing to contract to fill final roster spot

Noah Weber

Portland Trail Blazers v Dallas Mavericks / Tim Heitman/GettyImages

On Sunday afternoon, the Dallas Mavericks fell to the Philadelphia 76ers 120-116 at home.

Dallas was playing from behind for most of the game, and their fourth-quarter comeback was too little, too late.

The Mavs have now lost four of their last five games, and there have been plenty of reasons that Dallas has been struggling. Some of these reasons include head coach Jason Kidd's questionable rotations, Tim Hardaway Jr.'s struggles, and the overall inconsistency of almost everyone on the roster.

Dallas Mavericks sign young wing to contract to fill final roster spot

The Mavs are dropping games at the worst possible time, and they have now filled their final roster spot according to a report from Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

According to Wojnarowski, the Mavericks are converting wing A.J. Lawson's two-way contract to a standard contract, giving them 15 players on standard contracts now.

This season for the Texas Legends of the G League, Lawson is averaging 20.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 0.6 steals per game while shooting 53 percent from the field and 29.4 percent from downtown. For the Mavs this season, Lawson is averaging 3.8 points and 1.2 rebounds per game while shooting 47.1 percent from the field.

Lawson hasn't played much for Dallas this season, but this signing keeps Lawson as a piece of Dallas' young core, regardless of whether he is someone who the Mavs play. Dallas has gotten much younger over the last year, and Lawson could be someone who develops into a rotation piece for the Mavs.

Lawson brings great energy, is a good volume shooter, and has good athleticism. He has also shown flashes of being a good defender, but his slender frame keeps him from being extremely versatile.

Don't expect Lawson to be a featured piece of the rotation immediately, but his potential, energy, and shooting should excite Mavs fans. He can fill up the stat sheet in a hurry and will likely spend most of his minutes at the two or three.

For all the latest on A.J. Lawson and the Dallas Mavericks this season, stay tuned.

Noah Weber

Noah Weber is the Site Expert for The Smoking Cuban, covering the Dallas Mavericks as a credentialed media member since the 2022-23 season. With a Bachelor of Science in Sports Media from Oklahoma State University, Noah has worked in sports journalism since 2019. While he's covered the Dallas Cowboys and Oklahoma State Cowboys, he has now established himself as a go-to voice for Mavericks coverage. Noah's expertise includes in-depth game analysis, social media content creation, and offering unique perspectives through his reporting. His work has been featured on major platforms such as ESPN, Bleacher Report, and Overtime. During his time at Oklahoma State, Noah won first place in the Oklahoma Broadcast Education Association Awards for a show he co-produced. Outside of covering the Mavs, Noah enjoys working out, playing basketball and Spikeball, and spending quality time with friends and family.