Jaden Hardy is ready to contribute

The Dallas Mavericks had their sights set on Jaden Hardy in the 2022 NBA Draft, and through some luck, they were able to select him, despite not having a first-round pick available. When Hardy slipped into the second round, the Mavericks shipped a pair of future second-round picks to the Sacramento Kings and selected Hardy 37th overall.

Dallas brought Hardy along perfectly, at first parking him with the G League Texas Legends to get plenty of reps. There was little chance of him seeing big minutes with the Mavericks, who were set to compete for the playoffs (welp), so rather than having Hardy waste away on the bench, they let him cook with the Legends. And he did, to the point that Mavericks…