Mavericks Need to Sign Potential Hidden Gem After Lakers Release

We never want to give too much credit to a Western Conference rival, but few franchises in the NBA have been better at finding hidden gems than the Los Angeles Lakers. Guys like Austin Reaves and Alex Caruso have fully showcased the Lakers' ability to hit on undrafted free agents and second-round picks.

That makes their most recent release pretty shocking, as well as a great opportunity for other NBA teams.

Mavericks Rumors: Sign Bryce Hamilton?

Bryce Hamilton was a 2022 undrafted free agent who was a G-League standout for the South Bay Lakers, and the potential he showed there makes him an intriguing option to give a two-way contract or to sign to the Texas Legends.

Hamilton played 29 games for South Bay, averaging 14.1 points, 4.6 boards and 2.1 assists per game while shooting over 50% from the field, including 38.5% from 3-point range.

Your first thought may be "well the Lakers must have cut him for a reason," but even Lakers media seems surprised by the release. He showed a lot of promise for L.A., and his release certainly wasn't due to a lack of potential.

Hamilton also checks some of the boxes we often see from a “where’d he come from?” type of surprise contributor. He played all four years in college, and didn’t go to a marquee school (UNLV). He showed great development with each collegiate season though, peaking at 21.8 points, 5.0 boards and 2.2 assists in 32.3 minutes with just 1.9 turnovers per game.

The knock on his game is that he’s not a great ball-handler, and at 6-foot-4 he’s undersized to play off the ball. and he's not one of those guys who defenders bigger than they are.

Still, he's an absolute spark plug of a scorer, dangerous both off the dribble and in catch-and-shoot situations while moving well off the ball. You can also see from his rebound totals (both G League and in college) that he's not afraid of mixing it up inside and using his athleticism to grab more boards than you'd expect.

I'm not saying Hamilton is a lock to become a legit NBA contributor or anything, but guys with this much potential don't become available all the time, and the Mavs would be foolish to not at least give him a long hard look.

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