By Patrick Hayes

Detroit native Chris Douglas-Roberts only had a couple of days to make the Dallas Mavericks when they added him to their training camp roster on Friday. Not surprisingly, the Mavs waived him on Sunday prior to the NBA’s Monday deadline to get their roster down to the league’s maximum of 15 players. But Douglas-Roberts made enough of an impression to start out the season the the Dallas D-League affiliate, the Texas Legends, if he wants to, according to Tim McMahon of ESPN Dallas:

The Mavs waived Ely and Douglas-Roberts on Sunday morning, before they even practiced with the team.

It’s a good bet that they’ll end up on the roster of the Texas Legends, the Mavs’ D-League affiliate. The Legends now own the rights of both players.

Douglas-Roberts is talented enough that, if he wanted, he’d make much more money in Europe than he would in the D-League. But the Legends also could represent a quicker path back to the NBA. Not only has the D-League increasingly seen NBA teams mining talent around mid-season, but the Mavericks are foremost among those teams in recognizing the league’s value. If Douglas-Roberts plays for the Legends and plays well, he’ll likely find himself with another NBA opportunity this season. If he goes overseas, he likely wouldn’t have another chance to play in the NBA until next season.

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