Could The Mavericks Have Found The Steal Of The NBA Draft?

The Dallas Mavericks brought in an intriguing class of rookies through the 2026 NBA Draft. Each of the four prospects provides a different skill set to the franchise that could help the team continue to form a young core around rising star Cooper Flagg.

While fans are excited to watch Dusty May and Morez Johnson reunite in Dallas, there are a lot of eyes on the Mavericks' other first-round pick, international guard Sergio De Larrea.

De Larrea arrives in Dallas with professional experience already under his belt. He worked his way up Valencia Basket after joining the franchise when he was just 15 years old.

Though De Larrea won't turn 21 until December, he has a legitimate opportunity to establish a role with the Mavericks early in his transition to the NBA.

Dusty May Told Sergio De Larrea Is The Steal Of The 2026 NBA Draft

May has been going through a round of interviews since his introductory press conference last week.

In a recent appearance on CBS Texas, May shared an interesting tidbit on De Larrea.

May revealed that an unnamed friend who played with De Larrea on Valencia Basket believes the rookie wing could end up being the steal of the draft.

"He's able to score the ball, he can pressure the other team, he can facilitate, he can do a little bit of everything," May said. "He has a high, high ceiling as well."

"I actually had a friend who played with him overseas the year before this reach out and thought that he was the steal of the draft," May added.

De Larrea had a career year in 2025-26, averaging 9.7 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 3.7 assists over 18.3 minutes per game in Liga ACB play. He shot 44.3% from the field, 40.7% from three-point range, and 77.6% at the line, which is a good sign that he can continue improving as a shooter.

Impressively, De Larrea connected on over 40% of his three-pointers in Liga ACB action despite vastly increasing his attempts. He took 91 triples and hit 37 of them. Prior to that, De Larrea had only attempted 97 total shots from distance since joining the main club in 2023.

De Larrea played a key role as Valencia Basket defeated Barcelona 4-0 to win the league title.

May didn't hesitate to note that the Mavericks have championship experience across the roster.

"It's important that the guys know what it takes to compete at that level," May said. "We have an NBA champion in Kyrie [Irving], we've got a EuroLeague (Liga ACB) champion in Sergio [De Larrea], an NCAA champion in Morez [Johnson], so we're moving in the right direction."

De Larrea will get his first taste of NBA action at Summer League in Las Vegas. The Mavericks tip off their slate against the Golden State Warriors on Thursday evening.

His performance should be one of the primary topics of discussion over the next few weeks. De Larrea has already declared his intentions to join Dallas for the 2026-27 season. He signed a four-year/$16.3 million deal last Friday.

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