New Mavericks GM Praised for His Very Early Scouting of Victor Wembanyama

The Dallas Mavericks have a new general manager. Team president Masai Ujiri named Mike Schmitz to be the GM, coming over from the Portland Trail Blazers as an Assistant GM, and before that, he'd spent time with DraftExpress, a scouting group that now falls under ESPN.

Schmitz's experience scouting has resurfaced recently, especially with how early he was onto Victor Wembanyama. ESPN's Scott Van Pelt shared his firsthand experience of hearing about Wembanyama for the first time.

"In 2020, we had a guy on from a ballroom in Lithuania, I think it was, who was there to see a 16-year-old French kid he swore was unlike anything else on earth. I thought he was nuts. He was right.︀︀ That guy Mike Schmitz is now the Mavs GM," Van Pelt posted on X.

At the time, Wembanyama was already a 7-footer, but being that tall doesn't always lead to skill, and he is unquestionably the most talented 7-footer we've ever seen. Dirk Nowitzki was better offensively, but Wembanyama has a deeper range, is an elite defender, and is slightly more mobile (Nowitzki, in his youth, was more mobile than people remember). Other 7-footers, like Shaquille O'Neal, are known for their brute strength, but that isn't what Wembanyama would ever be.

A report from Schmitz surfaced in 2020 saying he can shoot like Kristaps Porzingis and block shots like Rudy Gobert. Wembanyama has become even more than that.

“There's a kid named Victor Wembanyama, who's maybe the best prospect in the world. He's 7'3 with almost an 8 FT wingspan. He blocks shots like Gobert and he shoots like Porzingis. He can handle & pass. I've never seen anything like him.”

- Mike Schmitz

pic.twitter.com/ChbQyZv336
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) October 17, 2020

This all comes after Victor Wembanyama's ridiculous Western Conference Finals opener against the Oklahoma City Thunder, where he had 40 points and 23 rebounds in a double overtime win, including a 32-foot three-pointer in the final 30 seconds of the first overtime to send it to the second overtime.

Mike Schmitz's Past Gives Hope for Bright Future

Mike Schmitz may have gotten into a little bit of trouble with the Trail Blazers for impermissible contact with Hansen Yang, which resulted in a two-week suspension for him. However, his scouting history is stellar.

He was very high on Luka Doncic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the 2018 class. A lot of people were high on Doncic, but he still went 3rd, while SGA went 11th overall. Schmitz had SGA ranked ahead of other point guards who went ahead of him, such as Trae Young and Collin Sexton.

Not every scout is perfect, but he's right more than he's wrong, and that's impressive for any scout. That's a must for the Mavericks, as this is the last year they control their first-round pick until 2031. They'll need to nail this draft, as well as hit on picks down the board in future years. Schmitz and Masai Ujiri have both shown that ability.

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