The Dallas Mavericks landed Doug McDermott and a second-round pick as part of a three-team trade that saw them say goodbye to Devin Harris. Here are 10 things you should know about McDermott:
1 The basics
Doug McDermott was born on Jan. 3, 1992 in Grand Forks, North Dakota. He went to Ames High School and Iowa and later played college basketball at Creighton, where he was the national player of the year in 2014 and an All-American from 2012-14.
He was No. 11 pick in the 2014 draft by the Denver Nuggets, but was traded to the Chicago Bulls on draft night. He wears No. 20 for the Mavericks.
2. Incredible college career
McDermott was one of the most exciting college players in the country from 2010-2014. In four seasons at Creighton, McDermott averaged 21.7 points, 7.5 rebounds and shot 45.8 percent from three.
His best season came as a senior, when Creighton was in its first year in the Big East. McDermott averaged 26.7 points and 7.0 rebounds while shooting 52.6 percent from the field and 44.9 percent from three. He was the AP national player of the year, the Big East Player of the Year and a consensus All-American, becoming one of the greatest scorer in college basketball. We could watch highlights of his college highlights all day...
3. Son of Creighton coach Greg McDermott
Basketball runs in the family for the McDermotts, so much so that Doug's head coach at Creighton was none other than his father, Greg.
Greg McDermott has been a college head coach for 17 years at Northern Iowa, Iowa State and Creighton. He has a 330-220 record as a head coach. Greg and Doug made the NCAA tournament in three out of Doug's four years at Creighton. After the trade, Greg is now a Mavs fan.
Officially an @dallasmavs fan! Wishing @dougmcdermott all the best in Dallas! #Timeout2Vote #CoachGregMcDermott
— Coach McDermott (@cucoachmac) February 9, 2018
4. Played high school basketball with Harrison Barnes
McDermott is already very familiar with one of his new teammates in Harrison Barnes. The two played together at Ames High School in Iowa, where they won 53 consecutive games and two state championships from 2009-10. You can take a look back at some of McDermott's high school days with this photo gallery from the Des Moines Register.
"It's crazy that we're back together," McDermott said. "I guess it's fate.
"We had a lot of success in high school. I know this is a different level, but we hope to achieve that again."
It looks like Barnes is happy to be sharing the court with McDermott again, too.
Good win tonight and s/o to my bro @dougmcdermott on his debut with the squad!!! #MFFL #littlecyclones
— Harrison Barnes (@hbarnes) February 11, 2018
5. Sacrificed his college scholarship for another player
Believe it or not, McDermott was a walk on for Creighton during his senior season. McDermott's teammate, Grant Gibbs, was granted a sixth year of eligibility before the 2013-14 season. McDermott sacrificed his scholarship and became a walk on to make room for Gibbs on the roster.
"From my perspective, it's worth it to pay for Doug's tuition to have a player of Grant's caliber (on scholarship.) It was really the only option," Greg McDermott told USA TODAY Sports.
Now that's a team player!
6. Nicknamed Dougie McBuckets
McDermott also has what might be the best nickname in basketball: 'Dougie McBuckets.'
The nickname was apparantly given to McDermott by Troy Machir, who was an NBC Sports blogger while McDermott played at Creighton. McDermott's initial nickname was 'Dougie Fresh", but Machir had a better idea.
"I just said, 'He's not Dougie Fresh. Doug E. Fresh is a rapper,'" Machir said to NewsOK. "I was like, 'I'm drawing a hard line here. They should just call him...' and I paused for a second, 'Dougie McBuckets.'"
He took the name to Twitter and it spread like wildfire. And, given his shooting ability, it's very accurate.
7. Every one of his teams has traded him
McDermott is very familiar with being traded. The Nuggets selected McDermott on draft night and immediately traded to Chicago in 2014. The Bulls traded McDermott and Taj Gibson to the Oklahoma City Thunder at last season's trade deadline.
His tenure with the Thunder didn't last long. Oklahoma City traded McDermott to the Knicks in the same deal that sent Carmelo Anthony to the Thunder. His Knicks teammates voiced their sadness at McDermott being traded to the Mavericks.
I m gonna miss you my brother.
— Enes Kanter (@EnesKanter) February 8, 2018
Good luck with your career.@dougmcdermott
One of the best shooter in the league #McBuckets pic.twitter.com/cSwyao5p5B
No more quick side 😢! @dougmcdermott Goodluck in your next city. They are lucky to have you brother. See you in Omaha my guy.
— Kyle O'Quinn (@Kyle_OQuinn) February 8, 2018
Perhaps Dallas might finally be a long term destination...
8. Restricted free agent
Or maybe Dallas won't be a long term destination. McDermott will be a restricted free agent this summer. The Mavericks will be able to match any offer that McDermott gets to keep him around in Dallas. Consider the next two months as an audition period for McDermott.
9. Met Drake
McDermott and the Bulls visited the Raptors on March 14, 2016. McDermott had a huge game, leading all Bulls scorers with 29 points in a 109-107 victory. The performance caught the attention of noted Raptors fan Drake. McDermott, of course, had to get something on his Instagram.
10. Sports Illustrated cover
McDermott has graced a pretty awesome cover of Sports Illustrated while at Creighton. SI recreated the "College basketball's secret weapon" cover that featured Larry Bird. It's fitting, since McDermott has plenty of respect for Bird.
