Mavs Rookie Jaden Hardy Shows Potential Again; Can Kyrie Irving Be His Mentor?

The Dallas Mavericks could use some fresh legs to help get them to the NBA postseason, and 20-year-old rookie Jaden Hardy deserves to have that opportunity.

Although the Dallas Mavericks were finally able to add a true co-star next to Luka Doncic in Kyrie Irving before this season's trade deadline, the reality of the situation is that their roster still has too many holes that can't be properly filled until the upcoming offseason.

Irving is incredibly talented, and he has proven to be a lethal offensive fit next to Doncic over the last few weeks. Despite the gain of star power, though, the Mavs' depth has suffered. Coach Jason Kidd's rotations haven't been great, but to be completely fair to him, he only has so much to work with.

With that being said, what can Kidd do right now instead of waiting for the offseason? A good start would be finding consistent minutes for promising 20-year-old rookie Jaden Hardy.

Hardy has appeared in 33 games for the Mavs, averaging 6.5 points in 11.8 minutes per game while shooting 43.5 percent from the field and 35.5 percent on 3s -- respectable numbers for the No. 37 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft given his limited opportunities.

Per 100 possessions, Hardy averages 27.8 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.2 steals. Obviously we don't think the rook would average those numbers on a regular basis right now even if he got starter minutes, but it's a good indicator of his potential.

In his time spent with the Mavs' G League Affiliate, the Texas Legends, Hardy led the league in scoring at 28.8 points per game while shooting 54.6 percent from the field and 49 percent on nearly nine attempts from deep per game.

In the Mavs' latest game -- a 113-106 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans -- Hardy finished with 11 points on 4-5 shooting in just 17 minutes off the bench. Dallas appeared to be dead in the water, trailing by 18 points entering the fourth quarter, but Hardy scored nine of his 11 points in the final frame, and Irving scored 11 of his team-high 27 points as the Mavs made the Pelicans sweat down the stretch.

Irving's combination of basketball knowledge, skill and championship experience makes him a solid candidate to be a great mentor for Hardy. And if Irving wanted to flex his star power, he could probably talk Kidd into playing Hardy more -- something Kidd claims he's already considering.

"He gave us some energy, [some] life," Kidd said of Hardy after Wednesday's loss. "Being able to put him in play, he hasn't played. I thought he responded positively [for] a rookie. He helped us. Going down the stretch with the injuries that we've had, we might have to look to play him a little bit more."

Injuries or not, Hardy should, at the very least, be getting any minutes Kidd considers going to Frank Ntilikina instead. In 41 games, Ntilikina is averaging just 2.3 points while shooting 34 percent from the field and 20.8 percent from deep. And although Ntilikina has a reputation for being a good defender, he hasn't lived up to that billing this season.

Not only has Hardy shown he's capable of contributing in limited minutes, but he's also shown he's not afraid of the moment in most important quarter of the game. Irving has had that same mentality for his entire career, so perhaps he'll take Hardy under his wing for the rest of this season and, if all goes according to plan for the Mavs this summer, many seasons to come.

"Really it's just about staying consistent," Hardy told DallasBasketball.com in an exclusive 1-on-1 interview earlier this season. "Staying ready for whenever my name is called and when that opportunity comes."

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