Aaron Jarrell Hammons, born on 27 August 1992, is from Indiana but attended famous talent pool Oak Hill Academy in Virginia which has produced players such as Rajon Rondo and Josh Smith.
For college, the 7-foot center returned to his home-state Indiana and played for Purdue in the Big Ten conference. Former Maverick Brian Cardinal is a Purdue alumni who has been in close contact with Hammons and probably provided the Mavs with some intel. In Hammons’ four seasons with the team, Purdue made the NCAA tournament twice, but lost in the first round each time and did not garner a Big Ten title.