Instant 2026 NBA Draft Grade: Mavericks Trade With Knicks For Top International Guard

The Dallas Mavericks surprised a lot of people with their first pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, as they took Michigan's Morez Johnson Jr. with the 9th pick. It puts Johnson back with his college coach, as the Mavs recently hired Dusty May as Jason Kidd's replacement, but it's an odd fit on paper. It should be electric defensively in the frontcourt, but the offensive spacing is questionable, at best.

That put getting a guard as a priority later in the draft. The Mavericks held the 30th overall pick, and after talk of possibly using a player like Daniel Gafford to trade up, they ended up trading up to the 25th pick with the New York Knicks to take Sergio de Larrea, a 6'7" guard from Spain.

The total deal, which included the Phoenix Suns and LA Lakers, as it was originally reported that the Mavericks were just trading the 30th pick to them, ended up looking like this:

Los Angeles Lakers Received: 24th Overall Pick (Cameron Carr, Baylor)
Dallas Mavericks Received: 25th Overall (Sergio de Larrea, Spain)
Phoenix Suns Received: 30th Overall (Koa Peat, Arizona
New York Knicks Received: Cash (Lakers), two second-round picks (Mavericks), and three more second-round picks (Suns)

The exact second-rounders are still to be finalized.

Sergio de Larrea is a 6'7" guard who averaged 9.7 PPG and 3.7 APG for Valencia as a 20-year-old. Despite his size, he handles the ball well and is great in the pick-and-roll, but he does struggle with turnovers. That may make him a better fit at shooting guard initially while he develops a tighter handle.

Sources: New York traded No. 25 pick Sergio De Larrea to the Dallas Mavericks for No. 30 Koa Peat and two second-round picks. And then the Knicks traded Peat to the Phoenix Suns for three-rounders and cash. So Knicks move out of the first round -- pick up 5 seconds and cash.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 24, 2026

Instant Draft Grade for Sergio de Larrea: A-

The Dallas Mavericks had to improve their backcourt, and when it looked like they were trading out of the first round, it looked catastrophic. Second-rounders rarely hit, so it's good to see Masai Ujiri and Mike Schmitz be aggressive to target a guard who could really develop into something.

De Larrea isn't perfect, as he'll have to improve his shot-making, and he's not a great athlete. However, he won the MVP of the Spanish Supercup in 2025 and was voted Liga ACB's best young player this season. He has a lot of upside, which is something the Mavs needed.

Prior to this, the Mavericks were looking at a backcourt that featured Kyrie Irving coming off an ACL injury and Ryan Nembhard. This is a great swing on a talented prospect.

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