Instant 2026 NBA Draft Grade: Mavericks Select Michigan's Morez Johnson

Tuesday night marked the start of the 2026 NBA Draft, a huge moment for the Dallas Mavericks as they look to rebuild around Cooper Flagg. They have a new team president (Masai Ujiri), general manager (Mike Schmitz), and head coach (Dusty May). Now, it was time to add talent around Flagg.

The Mavericks entered the night with the 9th, 30th, and 48th overall picks. A run of guards hit right in front of the Mavericks, as expected, with Keaton Wagler going 5th to the Clippers, Mikel Brown Jr. going 6th to the Nets, Darius Acuff Jr. going 7th to the Kings, and Kingston Flemings going 8th to the Hawks.

With a lot of speculation that the Mavericks may look to trade down, especially with the OKC Thunder, they decided to stick with the 9th pick and take Michigan's Morez Johnson Jr., a 6'9", 250-pound forward who can play either frontcourt position. This was the first big surprise of the draft, as Johnson was projected to go later in the lottery or soon after it. Obviously, the big connection comes from the Mavericks' new coach, Dusty May, coming from Michigan, and he gets one of his former players.

Johnson averaged 13.1 PPG, 7.3 RPG, and 1.1 BPG, and can be a power forward or center at this level. He's arguably the most versatile defender in the draft, but it wouldn't be surprising to see him play more at center early. He did make some threes, going 12/35 this season. Johnson started his career at Illinois, transferring to Michigan for his sophomore season, which ended in a national championship.

WELCOME TO DALLAS, @morezjohnsonJr! 🤠#MavsDraft26 pic.twitter.com/47ToOhwynn
— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) June 24, 2026

Instant Draft Grade for Mavericks Drafting Morez Johnson Jr.: C-

Johnson is a unique player, and I have questions about how he'll translate to the NBA. The Mavericks have a loaded frontcourt of players that can play the 4 or 5, such as P.J. Washington, Naji Marshall, Daniel Gafford, Dereck Lively II, and more. They obviously weren't as enamored with Nate Ament (who I wasn't a fan of anyway) or Brayden Burries, who were the two most rumored to be taken 9th.

The Mavericks needed a guard desperately, and Burries was still on the board. They could've traded back and taken a guard, or probably could've landed Johnson still. Taking him 9th, when he was ranked around 13th on the consensus boards, feels like a reach. Dusty May obviously wanted his former player again, but Johnson's fit at this level is a huge question.

Johnson struggles with fouls at times, but he can be a physical presence and dominate inside.

However, if they make a trade to free up some space in the frontcourt, this could make a lot more sense. His defense and rebounding will get him playing time right away, but he doesn't help any of the Mavericks' biggest needs: shooting, playmaking, or on-ball creation.

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