DHJ Quick Take: Mavericks Land Draft Rights to Vsevolod Ishchenko in Lakers Deal
The Dallas Mavericks acquired the draft rights to Russian guard Vsevolod Ishchenko, the 56th pick, from the Los Angeles Lakers for cash considerations. The 21-year-old took home VTB United League Young Player of the Year honors in 2025-26.
- Who did the Mavericks get? The rights to guard Vsevolod Ishchenko, the 56th overall pick.
- How did they get him? By sending cash considerations to the Lakers.
- What makes him interesting? Efficient shooting at size, including 46.3% from 3 last season.
- Is he coming to Dallas now? That is undecided, with a draft-and-stash route still on the table.
DALLAS — The Dallas Mavericks picked up the draft rights to guard Vsevolod Ishchenko, taken 56th overall in the 2026 NBA Draft, sending cash considerations to the Los Angeles Lakers to complete the deal, the team announced Wednesday.
Ishchenko becomes the second prospect Dallas walked away with this draft, joining No. 9 pick Morez Johnson Jr. The 21-year-old has played his entire career in Russia, where he turned in an efficient breakout season after rising fast through the youth ranks.
Vsevolod Ishchenko Broke Out for Lokomotiv Kuban in 2025-26
Across 43 games for Lokomotiv Kuban this past season, Ishchenko put up 8.7 points, 4.7 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.3 steals in 23.7 minutes a night while shooting 51.6% from the floor, 46.3% from 3, and 80.1% at the line. The scoring volume stayed modest, but the efficiency did not, and the VTB United League rewarded him with both an All-Star nod and its Young Player of the Year award.
The shooting numbers are what travel. At 6-8 and 218 pounds, Ishchenko offers the kind of size-and-stroke combination that lifted him to No. 54 on ESPN’s final board before the draft.
Vsevolod Ishchenko Climbed Through Russia’s Youth System
The breakout did not come from nowhere. Ishchenko first turned heads with Lokomotiv Kuban-2, collecting a pair of VTB Youth April MVP awards while averaging 16.1 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 1.6 steals in 30.0 minutes per game as an 18-year-old.
Those numbers earned him a look on the senior roster, and a measured 2024-25 season followed as he found his footing against professional competition before everything clicked a year later.
How Vsevolod Ishchenko Fits Into the Mavericks’ Plans
Dallas now controls Ishchenko’s rights after the Lakers grabbed him at No. 56 and flipped him minutes later. The front office handling the call belongs to president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri and general manager Mike Schmitz, with Dusty May settling in as head coach.
What comes next is the open question. The Mavericks could sign Ishchenko this offseason or simply bank his rights and let him keep developing in Russia, a flexible bet that costs them nothing but cash and slots a young, efficient shooter behind a class fronted by Johnson.
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