Malachi Smith signed a two-year deal with the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday, turning a pair of 10-day contracts into a longer stay with the team. The undrafted guard, who had bounced through four different NBA G League teams before landing in Brooklyn, will now be on the roster through the 2025-26 season.
Smith, 25, earned 73,153 dollars on each of his two 10-day contracts and will make 65,838 dollars for the remaining five games of the regular season. In 10 appearances with the Nets, he averaged 7.3 points while shooting 52.7 percent from the field, 54.5 percent on 3-pointers and 100.0 percent from the free throw line. He also averaged 2.1 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.0 steals per game.
That production followed a long climb. Smith started his college career at Wright State in 2018-19, transferred to Chattanooga from 2020-22 and then played for Gonzaga before entering the 2023 NBA Draft, where he went undrafted after bypassing his final season of eligibility. He was named the West Coast Conference Sixth Man of the Year in 2023, but his route to Brooklyn ran through the Portland Trail Blazers' Rip City Remix, the Milwaukee Bucks' Wisconsin Herd, the Memphis Grizzlies' Memphis Hustle and Long Island over the last three years.
Read Also: Aiden Sherrell Enters Transfer Portal After 11.1 Points Season
Brooklyn's move gives Smith the first real multiyear NBA opportunity of his career, and it comes after he chose to stay in the G League rather than take more money in Europe or Asia. The Nets had him on Long Island before bringing him up, and his numbers showed enough efficiency to make the gamble harder to ignore.
Read Also: Claudio Giráldez Declares European Aim After 44 Points Primera División
The contract also adds another name to Gonzaga's NBA presence. The school had 13 alums compete in the league during the 2025-26 campaign, bringing its all-time total to 34, and Smith is the latest to turn a developmental path into a lasting roster spot.
