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The Dallas Mavericks have signed Brandon Ashley per reports:
The Mavs have signed 4-man Brandon Ashley, who had a strong showing for Dallas playing mostly center in Las Vegas.
— Bobby Karalla (@bobbykaralla) August 3, 2017
After going undrafted out of the University of Arizona, Ashley has spent time playing overseas and with the Mavericks G-League affiliate, the Texas Legends.
Just 23 years old, the 6’9’’ big man fits the mold of the Mavericks youth movement and flashed signs of potential this summer in both the Orlando Summer League and Las Vegas Summer League.
In Orlando, Ashley averaged 8.5 points, 5 rebounds and canned 50 percent of his threes. While his shooting percentages slipped in Las Vegas, Ashley averaged 11.5 points and nearly four rebounds per game.
The Mavericks are fond of Ashley, and he could be a good fit as a stretch four in Rick Carlisle’s offense as Ashley possesses an outside game, something that a few bigs on this roster do not. But Ashley lacks a true inside presence. He showed a soft touch around the basket during the summer, but it is hard to see Ashley competing with NBA bigs for several minutes per game.
Source tells me #Mavs signing of Brandon Ashley is about him being an 'affiliate player.' @TexasLegends https://t.co/EjGLfzHmtm
— mike fisher ✭ (@fishsports) August 4, 2017
As has been the trend this summer, the Mavs are signing low risk projects, which is exactly what Ashley is. Fish’s tweet makes a lot of sense for a player like Ashley; if he performs in the G-League, he may get a shot down the road. For a player with Ashley’s pedigree (he was the #3 power forward in the country in 2012), it’s worth giving him a shot.
Stay patient Mavs fans.