FRISCO — Dallas Mavericks wing John Poulakidas made a special appearance at Friday’s Mavs Academy Hoop Camp.
Poulakidas signed a two-way contract with Dallas on February 28, 2026. In 13 games with the Mavericks, he averaged 8.8 points, shooting 40.3% on 5.9 three-pointers attempted per game.
Experience at Mavs Academy Hoop Camp
At Friday’s Hoop Camp, Poulakidas entered the gym to an ovation before answering questions and playing knockout with the campers.
“Being part of Mavs Camp was amazing,” Poulakidas said. “Being able to give back and meet all these young kids that have the same amount of energy and love for the game that I did when I was their age, so it’s super cool to come out and see everybody.”
He spared no expense competing with the campers, getting a good workout in as they tried to challenge him.
“You see the sweat,” Poulakidas said. “I was going hard with them out there today. I just have so much fun, like I said, because I was once in their shoes.”
Asked by the campers who the hardest player he’s had to guard, Poulakidas gave a pretty common response: LeBron James. Poulakidas was just six months old when James played his first NBA game and he reflected on that experience to the media.
“I didn’t grow up a fan of just one player; I grew up a fan of the entire league,” Poulakidas said. “I felt like this past year was very surreal to me. Guys like that – that I’m just suiting up against, even guys that I’ve got in the locker room with me that I’m just like, ‘Man. This is, this is surreal.’”
Thoughts on the Mavericks’ New Front Office
Before departing, Poulakidas shared his first impressions of Dallas’ new leadership group since the hiring of Masai Ujiri as team president and Mike Schmitz as general manager.
“Ultimate professionalism,” Poulakidas said. “Obviously, Masai has had great success everywhere he’s been and Mike is obviously up-and-coming, very hungry. I’ve got great trust in what they’re gonna be able to do and what I’ve already seen from them, just as far as being around us guys that have been here this summer. I’m just super excited for the draft, for Summer League and beyond.”
