Bleacher Report’s latest offseason rankings put a spotlight on a name Mavericks fans have been comfortable bragging about for a while: Naji Marshall.
Dallas’ forward landed at No. 6 on the outlet’s list of the NBA’s most underrated players, a nod that lines up neatly with what’s already been obvious inside the Mavericks fan base. Marshall has become one of the league’s quieter success stories, the kind of player who piles up value without always grabbing the headlines.
His 2025-26 season gave the case plenty of fuel. Marshall averaged 15.2 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.1 steals per game while shooting 51.0 percent from the field. Those numbers alone would make him worth a look, but they still don’t fully capture what he brings.
Marshall has carved out a reputation as one of the NBA’s rare do-it-all wings, which is how he ended up with the nickname “The Knife.” He doesn’t exactly love the label, but it fits. He can handle the ball, help create offense, defend multiple spots and finish plays in a way that makes him look more complete than the average role player.
The production backed that up in a pretty exclusive way. Marshall was one of only 17 qualified players last season to average at least 15.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.1 steals per game. When the field-goal percentage requirement jumps to 50.0 percent or better, that group shrinks to seven players, including Nikola Jokic, LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard and Alperen Sengun.
And yet, for all that, Marshall still doesn’t get much national attention. Part of that probably comes from the way his game looks on the surface.
He isn’t flooding highlight reels with threes or dunks. Last season he made 62 threes at a 29.1 percent clip and finished with just 10 dunks.
Still, the box score only tells part of the story. Marshall has spent the last two seasons bouncing between the starting lineup and the bench, but his defensive assignment has stayed the same: take on some of the toughest matchups in the league. Last season, that meant time on James Harden, Deni Avdija, Jamal Murray, Keyonte George, Amen Thompson and Kevin Durant.
That workload matters because Marshall isn’t just filling a lane on one end. He’s helping initiate offense, contributing in a bunch of different ways and still taking on elite scorers night after night.
Bleacher Report put that versatility into sharp words, writing, “ [Marshall] can shape-shift on defense and then handle, create and finish on offense. That sounds like a star, right?” The outlet also added, “If Cooper Flagg and a healthy Kyrie Irving can help the Mavericks make noise next season, don't be surprised to see a lot of overdue praise come Marshall's way.”
For Mavericks fans, the recognition is more confirmation than revelation. Marshall may not have topped the list, but being included at all says plenty about where he stands: one of the league’s better players, and still one of its least talked about.
In Other News...
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Mavericks Are Flirting With A Problem Fans Know Too Well
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For Dallas, the concern is not just depth in the abstract, but how hard it is to patch the problem from here. The Mavericks are short on true ball-handlers, and the roster math makes another addition difficult unless they create room first. That leaves the team trying to balance a heavy front line with a limited group of guards, a familiar kind of construction issue that can become a lot more obvious once the season starts. [Read more 🡒]
Mavericks Face One Tough Roster Decision Around Flagg And Kyrie
The Mavericks have spent the summer reshaping the roster around Cooper Flagg and Kyrie Irving, and the front office has clearly not been shy about adding more pieces. Dallas drafted Morez Johnson Jr. and Sergio De Larrea, acquired Santi Aldama and Tarik Biberovi, and also brought in Zaccharie Risacher, leaving the team with a deeper, more varied group than it had before the overhaul began.
Now comes the part that is always less glamorous than the shopping spree. Dallas is carrying 16 players and has to get down to 15 by opening night, which means someone has to go, and the real squeeze is showing up in the frontcourt and at center. P.J. Washington, Santi Aldama and Morez Johnson Jr. all bring power-forward traits, while the middle of the floor remains unsettled enough that the Mavericks are still sorting through how the rotation should actually look once the games start counting. [Read more 🡒]