In Saturday’s game between the Dallas Mavericks and Houston Rockets, Ryan Nembhard saw Jabari Smith Jr. take a hard dribble toward the basket and decided to strike.

Nembhard, Dallas’ 5-foot-11 guard, rushed toward Houston’s 6-foot-11 forward as a help defender. As Smith spun to his left, Nembhard wrestled the ball away and threw it ahead to teammate D’Angelo Russell for an easy transition basket.

These types of heady plays are how Nembhard is making his mark in Dallas as an undrafted rookie. The 22-year-old Canadian has been a steadying force for the Mavericks since moving into the team’s starting lineup on Nov. 28. He is averaging 14.8 points on a scorching 76.7 true-shooting percentage with 41 assists and eight turnovers in six games as a starter.

Nembhard’s emergence, combined with Anthony Davis’ return to the lineup, has breathed life into an offense that has been among the NBA’s worst for much of this season.

“I just have always tried to play the game the right way since I was a kid,” Nembhard said. “My dad was my coach growing up. He always instilled in us to play the right way and make the right play.”

Claude Nembhard, who raised his family in Aurora, Canada, didn’t play much organized basketball as a kid. While basketball culture in Canada is booming now, it was a much different story in the 1970s and ’80s.

“It wasn’t really there when I was younger,” Claude said. “I just played pickup. Men’s leagues. I was always a big.”

Claude stands 6 feet 3 inches. He’s tall, but not tall enough to reach basketball’s higher rungs as a post player. When Claude had children, he vowed they would be perimeter players. His first son, Andrew, arrived in 2000. Ryan came in 2003.

“I just made them guards,” said Claude, who’s now the CEO of the Ontario Basketball Association. “They were coach’s sons. All that ‘Hoosiers’ kind of stuff. Followed me everywhere I went. They just fell in love with the game.”

Ryan Nembhard (left) and older brother, Indiana Pacers guard Andrew (right), have learned a lot on the court from their father, Claude. (Courtesy of Claude Nembhard)

Claude was heavily influenced by Gregg Popovich’s San Antonio Spurs teams. Popovich preached playing “0.5 basketball,” meaning a player needed to pass, shoot or dribble within half a second of getting the ball. Claude wanted his sons to spread the ball around with the pass the same way the Spurs did.

“I really love the pass,” Claude said. “I think in today’s day and age, everyone wants to score, score, score, score. But back in the day, when I used to coach, I really used to encourage the pass. If some kid passed the ball to you and you scored, I would always say, ‘Great pass.’”

That stuck with his sons.

The Indiana Pacers took Andrew with the 31st pick in 2022, and he started 63 games as a rookie. At 6-4, Andrew has the size and tenacity to play both guard spots. He was a seamless fit next to Tyrese Haliburton last season, when the Pacers caught fire and came one win away from an NBA championship. This year, with Haliburton recovering from an Achilles tear, Andrew has played on the ball more and is averaging 17.9 points and 6.6 assists, both career highs.

Ryan, who is five inches shorter than his brother, is more of a pure point guard. As a senior at Gonzaga, he led the nation in assists, averaging 9.8 per game. The Mavericks, in last summer’s draft, were one of the teams high on Ryan’s poise, decision-making and shiftiness with the ball. Plus, multiple Mavericks team personnel had relationships with the Nembhard family dating back a decade or more. Former Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison first watched Andrew play in high school and knew Claude well. Mavericks assistant coach Jay Triano — the former Canada men’s national team coach — was another connection.

The Mavericks didn’t hold a second-round pick going into draft night, but they were confident Ryan’s camp felt good about Dallas as a potential landing spot. As the middle of the second round approached, Nembhard’s representatives made it clear Dallas was Ryan’s ideal destination.

“As the draft night was going, we were like, ‘We know Dallas really, really wants us, and it would be a chance to play soon,’” Claude said. “Probably around pick 41, 42, it was like, ‘We want to go to Dallas.’

“We had a phone call (confirming Dallas would eventually sign him); here we are.”

Ryan is currently playing on a two-way contract. There are plans to promote him to a standard deal later this season, a Mavericks team source said.

Coach Jason Kidd indicated as early as the preseason that Ryan had a chance to be a rotation piece for Dallas. Ryan played sparingly the first two weeks of the season, and then missed time with a left-knee sprain. When Dallas headed to Los Angeles in late November for a back-to-back against the Lakers and Clippers, Kidd decided to start Ryan.

“He’s steady,” Kidd said. “Guys love playing with him, and he’s taking shots that present themselves. He’s playing the game at a very high level and playing the game the right way.”

Ryan Nembhard is averaging 14.8 points and has recorded 41 assists in six games as a starter. (Isaiah J. Downing / Imagn Images)

One of the games Ryan has circled is the Feb. 22 matchup against the Pacers in Indiana. That’s because while Ryan and Andrew have had countless driveway battles, they’ve never actually met head-to-head in an official game.

Claude sounded concerned about how heated it could get.

“They may fight that game,” he said. “Seriously, they love each other. They are very, very close. But they’re very competitive. Andrew is big bro. Ryan is little bro. There’s some animosity between them on the court.”

The Nembhard brothers have already proposed a bet, Claude said. If the Mavericks win, Andrew has to buy Ryan a Rolex watch. If the Pacers win, little brother must purchase big brother the pricey timepiece.

“They are already talking s— to each other, so that should be fun,” Claude said.

Assuming the Nembhard brothers survive playing against each other, both look poised to have long careers. Ryan and Andrew have solid foundations as basketball players, thanks to their father.

“I think my kids have really kind of grown to love the game and pass the ball,” Claude said. “Everyone loves playing with people who pass the ball. People love playing with them because they get the ball. If you run the floor, you’re getting the ball from my kids.”