The Dallas Mavericks have officially promoted Brandon Williams from a two-way contract to a standard NBA deal, making him eligible to participate in the team’s final regular-season games, the play-in tournament, and potentially the playoffs.
The transaction, finalized on Thursday, places Dallas at the limit of its hard salary cap, preventing the team from signing another player before the end of the season. As a result, fellow two-way players Kessler Edwards and Kai Jones will remain on their current contracts.
Williams’ promotion was first reported earlier this week by ESPN’s Shams Charania and confirmed by his agents, Derek Lafayette and Fess Irvin of Skyward Sports. His two-year standard deal comes after hitting the 50-game limit under his two-way status.
The 24-year-old guard has impressed this season, averaging 8.3 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 2.4 assists in 14.8 minutes per game across 31 appearances.
His impact became more significant after Kyrie Irving suffered a season-ending ACL injury in early March. In the 11 games since Irving’s injury, Williams has averaged 16.6 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 4.5 assists, showcasing efficiency with shooting splits of .511/.379/.857.
Originally debuting with the Portland Trail Blazers in the 2021–22 season, Williams spent the following year in the G League before joining Dallas on a two-way deal in 2023.
With the Mavs low on healthy guards, he’s expected to play a meaningful role in the postseason and could potentially secure a starting position next season depending on Irving’s recovery timeline.
Although Dallas considered other two-way players—Edwards and Jones—for the final roster spot, the team prioritized Williams due to his recent performance. According to ESPN’s Bobby Marks, Dallas could have fit two players into the roster by delaying Williams’ signing until Friday, but doing so would have required waiving a current player from the standard roster.
