Michigan State's Marcus Bingham Jr. reportedly signs with Dallas Mavericks after NBA draft
Marcus Bingham Jr. followed Xavier Tillman’s path from Grand Rapids to Michigan State basketball.
The 7-footer hopes that path continues to a spot in the NBA, the same way it did for Tillman three years ago.
Bingham was not picked in Thursday's NBA draft. But shortly after the final selection, Bingham signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Dallas Mavericks, according to Yahoo! Sports' Chris Haynes.
An Exhibit 10 deal is essentially a minimum-salary contract with an invite to the organization's Summer League team and training camp.
Bingham, 21, broke Tillman’s MSU career blocked shots record over the winter and finished with 168 in his four seasons as a Spartan. He put together a solid senior year, averaging career highs with 9.3 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.2 blocks in 18.7 minutes and shooting 53.4% overall. That included making 41.5% of his 3-point attempts, and he hit 74.7% at the free-throw line.
A bout of COVID-19 in late December limited his stamina during the Big Ten regular season, but Bingham recovered to produce three of his four double-doubles in the Spartans’ final six games, using his wingspan to block shots and clog passing lanes. The Spartans were 58 points better than their opponents with Bingham on the court.
Bingham in his final collegiate game had 16 points, 10 rebounds, three blocks and two steals in 27 minutes against Duke and NBA first-rounders Paolo Banchero, Mark Williams and AJ Griffin in the Spartans' second-round NCAA tournament loss.
Bingham's college teammate, Max Christie, was picked 35th overall by the Los Angeles Lakers while fellow Spartan Gabe Brown signed with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @chrissolari. Read more on the Michigan State Spartans and sign up for our Spartans newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State basketball's Marcus Bingham Jr. signs with Dallas
