10 Under-the-radar players for Dallas Mavericks to target in 2024 NBA Draft

5. Ajay Mitchell (UC Santa Barbara)

Ajay Mitchell is a score-first guard out of the University of California Santa Barbara, as the 22-year-old Belgium native averaged 20 points and 4 assists per game for the Gauchos last season. Mitchell is a fierce downhill attacker, and he has extremely good footwork and finesse within the painted area.

Mitchell uses his length at 6-foot-5 well as an on-ball defender and as a finisher on offense, but the combo guard lacks enough athleticism to be considered elite in either of those categories. Mitchell struggled as an off-ball defender last season at times, and his lack of speed and verticality hurt his ability to create space to make plays as well.

However, Mitchell is one of the more tried and true three-level scorers in this draft class, and if his career-best 50.4/39.3/85.8 shooting splits carry over from Bug West competition to the NBA, he could carve himself out a very nice professional career. Mitchell shot the ball from beyond-the-arc last season, but there are questions about his 3-point consistency heading into the NBA, as his junior season at UCSB was far and away his best shooting season of his collegiate career.

Mitchell may be one of the safest bets if Dallas is looking to add another bucket-getter into their lineup, as he has a Jalen Brunson-esque ability to play off two feet with his left hand, but his limitations defensively aren’t ideal for his size and the competition level he played against in the Big West doesn’t compare to the NBA whatsoever.