Santi Aldama debuts for the Mavericks with 8 points and 9 rebounds as Dusty May praises his feel

Santi Aldama’s wait is over. Nine months after arthroscopic right-knee surgery and four months after Dallas traded for him, the 7-footer made his Mavericks debut in Friday’s 112-100 Emirates NBA Cup win over the Utah Jazz — 8 points, 9 rebounds (more than any Jazz player), 1 assist and a plus-17 in 13 minutes off the bench.

SANTI ALDAMA: ACTIVE ✅#MFFL pic.twitter.com/Dhyfx93qVa

— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) November 6, 2026

Bucket, board, and an assist in a hurry

Aldama checked in with 8:03 left in the second quarter. Thirty-four seconds later he grabbed an offensive rebound and scored. On the next trip he found P.J. Washington for a three — his first assist in a Dallas jersey. The Mavericks posted the highlight under “Santi has entered the chat.”

Santi has entered the chat 🪣 pic.twitter.com/WFarIyD4Di

— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) November 7, 2026

May: everything looks a little better with Santi

Coach Dusty May had called the minutes an in-game decision before tip, then liked what he saw once Aldama shared the floor. At shootaround he said everything looked a little bit better with Santi because he’s such a good cutter and decision maker. After the game May pointed to feel and spacing: when Aldama is out there with any four teammates, “they function a little bit better because of his skill and feel for the game,” along with the shot-making that opens the floor for Cooper Flagg and Kyrie Irving.

Santi Aldama made his Mavericks debut in Friday's win over Utah. Dusty May said watching him at shootaround he thought, "everything looks a little bit better with Santi because he's such a good cutter. He's such a good decision maker."

— NBA Wire (@nbapresserwire) November 7, 2026

Aldama said he had only walked through with the second unit, not practiced with the starters, and credited teammates for making him feel welcome. “I’m just honestly happy to be out there,” he said. Dallas improved to 5-4 and 2-0 in Cup play; Aldama’s next question is how quickly those 13 minutes grow.