The Mavericks have agreed to a two-way contract with Walter Clayton Jr., according to ESPN’s Shams Charania, giving the former first-round pick a new opportunity after his release by the Grizzlies.
Dallas had emerged as a leading contender for Clayton on Tuesday, with Marc Stein reporting that coach Dusty May recruited the guard in college. The Mavericks opened a two-way spot by waiving John Poulakidas.
Clayton, 23, was selected No. 18 overall in the 2025 draft after leading Florida to the national championship. He earned the NCAA tournament’s Most Outstanding Player award and averaged 18.3 points during his final college season.
His first NBA season was less settled. Clayton began with the Jazz before being sent to Memphis in February as part of the Jaren Jackson Jr. trade.
Across 69 appearances for the two teams, he averaged 7.8 points, 4.0 assists and 2.0 rebounds in 20.4 minutes per game. He shot 38.4% from the field and 30.7% from three-point range.
Memphis waived Clayton and Micah Peavy on Monday to reach the regular-season roster limit. The Kings also had interest in Clayton as they sought additional playmaking following Ben Simmons’ season-ending Achilles injury.
The agreement allows Dallas to add Clayton without using a spot on its full 15-man standard roster. He’ll have another chance to develop the scoring and playmaking that made him a first-round pick just last year.
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