‘Proud Of Him’: Daniel Gafford Praises Morez Johnson Jr. After Rookie’s Career Night For Dallas Mavericks
DALLAS — Morez Johnson Jr. scored a career-high 13 points without missing a shot Monday night, and center Daniel Gafford said afterward that the sky is the limit for the Dallas Mavericks rookie.
Johnson went 5-of-5 from the field in 17 minutes, 3 seconds of a 115-100 loss to the Sacramento Kings at American Airlines Center. The 20-year-old forward also had 2 rebounds, both offensive, along with an assist and a steal.
Gafford pointed to Johnson’s work as a short-roll threat and on both backboards.
“I feel like he’s developing into the player he wants to be, 100%. He works every day,” Gafford said. “He’s obviously really paying attention to details on what he can do to be successful in this league. Short roll, being a guy, a threat on the offensive glass, defensive glass, and being a threat defensively in general. So I’m proud of him. The sky’s the limit for him. He’s going to have a good career in this league.”
Dallas took Johnson with the ninth overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft after he played at Illinois and Michigan. He entered Monday averaging 6.3 points on 53.3% shooting in 15.5 minutes per game.
Morez Johnson Jr. Scores 13 Without A Miss Against Sacramento Kings
Johnson’s first basket came on a reverse layup off a Naji Marshall pass with 6:17 left in the first quarter, putting Dallas ahead 10-6.
In the second quarter, he hit a turnaround bank hook and a tip-in, and he went 3-of-6 at the free-throw line across three trips. His two free throws with 2:09 left before halftime gave the Mavericks a 49-47 lead. Johnson had 9 points at the break.
After halftime, Johnson knocked down a 10-footer off a P.J. Washington pass late in the third quarter. In the fourth, he picked off a pass with 7:23 left and later threw down a driving dunk on a feed from Cooper Flagg that cut Sacramento’s lead to 94-84.
Gafford also had a big night alongside him, scoring a season-high 20 points on 9-of-10 shooting. The two Dallas big men combined to go 14-of-15 from the field.
Gafford Sees Young Players Coming In Hot
Johnson was one of several young players on the floor Monday. Sacramento rookie Darius Acuff Jr., the seventh overall pick in June, led all scorers with 25 points at 19 years old. Flagg, the first overall pick in 2025, is in his second season with Dallas.
Props belong to the people around the league’s younger players, in Gafford’s view.
“Man, I feel like they’re getting younger every year. I feel like sooner or later, we’re going to have a 16-year-old in the league,” Gafford explained. “So it’s just like, props to everyone that’s around these younger guys because it’s like they have their head on their shoulders the right way. And that’s no disrespect to any other generation when it comes to just coming into this league, but these guys are coming in hot.”
“And it’s like they have the mentality of just going out and just making the best of their minutes,” Gafford continued. “If they don’t make the best of those minutes, they find ways to make an impact on the floor, whether they’re on the sideline or not.”
Johnson and the Mavericks visit the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday at Frost Bank Center. Tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m. CT on ESPN.
