Top-10 Pick Khaman Maluach Makes First NBA Start as Suns Beat Mavericks

Former Duke teammates and top-10 picks Cooper Flagg and Khaman Maluach squared off on April 8.

Apr 8, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns center Khaman Maluach (10) blocks the shot of Dallas Mavericks forward Dwight Powell (7) in the first half at Mortgage Matchup Center. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The NBA regular season is wrapping up, and with more teams solidifying their placement in or out of the postseason, teams have turned to younger players on their roster.

Many teams who have already been eliminated from postseason contention are now letting rookies play more minutes to help develop their first-year players and determine who to keep around. The Phoenix Suns aren't in that category, but the team knows its postseason fate.

The Suns have secured the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference and will be competing in the Play-In Tournament. As a result, Phoenix was able to experiment with a new-look starting lineup on April 8 against the Dallas Mavericks.

That group of course was headlined by superstar Devin Booker, but saw a new face at center. Rookie Khaman Maluach, the No. 10 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, made his first NBA start against Dallas, and was a significant contributor in the Suns' 112-107 victory.

In 30 minutes of action, Maluach tallied 4 points, 14 rebounds, 3 blocks and zero turnovers while shooting 2-of-5 from the field and 0-of-1 from the free throw line. One of Maluach's blocks came against his former Duke teammate Cooper Flagg, who has starred in recent weeks for Dallas.

MAN MAN OH MY WHAT A BLOCK‼️ pic.twitter.com/9ipOXso8gR

— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) April 9, 2026

Maluach has played in 44 games for the Suns this year, averaging 8.5 minutes per contest. In five G League games, the 19-year-old averaged 17.4 points, 13.2 rebounds and 2 blocks per game while shooting 48.6% from the field.

The 7-foot-1 rookie needs to improve on offense to develop into a regular rotation player, but clearly has impressive ability as a rebounder and interior defender. Additionally, Maluach's size, youth and athleticism indicate that he could take an offensive leap.

For Dallas, rookie Cooper Flagg couldn't replicate his recent success, but still tallied a double-double with 11 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists, a steal and a block. Flagg shot 4-of-18 from the field, though.

Undrafted rookie Ryan Nembhard notched 9 points, 7 assists, 5 rebounds and zero turnovers for Dallas, shooting 4-of-9 from the field.

Fellow undrafted rookie John Poulakidas stole the show for the Mavericks, though, finishing with a career-high 23 points to go along with a rebound and an assist. The Yale product shot 8-of-12 from the field, 5-of-8 from 3-point range and 2-of-2 from the free throw line while committing zero turnovers.

Poulakidas' big outing came in just his 11th career NBA game after making his debut with the Mavericks on March 3.