Dallas Mavericks

The Dallas Mavericks have been amazing for fans over the past 20 years, with exciting talent and a high-octane, high-scoring style of play.

The ownership group of the Mavericks is led by Mark Cuban, who purchased the team in 2000. Recently, the Mavericks have seen a boost after drafting young star Luka Doncic. Luka has been nothing short of amazing for the Mavericks’s franchise. The point guard went third overall in the 2018 NBA draft and has shown poise that few young players have ever had in the NBA. His leadership abilities, passing, and clutch shotmaking continue to amaze fans as they watch his progression.

Luka continues to be a fan favorite and has made the Mavericks a championship contender. The improvements Luka made from his rookie to the second season was impressive by any standards. In his first NBA playoffs this year, he led the Mavericks to a 6 game series against one of the title favorites in the Los Angeles Clippers. At the young age of 20, Luka averaged 31.1 points and 8.7 assists per 36 minutes, fighting through injuries and a weakened roster missing star big Kristaps Porzingis.

With the addition of Porzingis and Tim Hardaway Jr, the Mavericks have a strong enough roster to compete well into the future. The young trio is as good as any “big three” in the NBA. At only 24, Porzingis averaged 27.2 points and 10.0 rebounds per 36 minutes in his first playoff appearance. Had Porzingis been healthy for the entire series, the dynamic duo could have likely taken the Clippers to a 7 game series. The Mavericks will likely be a championship contender in the near future.

Despite having only the third-highest points per game for the 2019-20 season, the Mavericks had the highest offensive rating in NBA history. Dallas led the league in 3-pointers made per 100 possessions and had relatively few turnovers. However, the Mavericks remain an average defensive team, which they must improve on if they want to compete for championships in the near future.

The Mavericks last won a championship in the 2010-11 season and made another NBA finals appearance in the 2005-06 season. The Mavs’ illustrious success over the past 20 years has largely been due to the rosters they’ve built around former MVP Dirk Nowitzki. Nowitzki led the Mavericks to 15 playoff appearances and made 14 All-Star teams in his career.

Dirk led the Mavericks to their best regular-season record in franchise history in 2006-07, with a league-high 67 wins. Dirk averages 24.5 points per 36 minutes that season and joined the fabled 50-40-90 club, shooting 50% from the field, 41.6% from 3, and 90% from the free-throw line en route to the MVP award. Dallas’ dream season came to an infamous and unfortunate end, as the Mavs lost to the We Believe Warriors in a huge first-round upset.

The 2010-11 Mavericks turned that bad luck around, upsetting the Miami Heat, led by Lebron James and Dwyane Wade, in their first season together. The 2010-11 Mavericks featured five veteran players that made at least one All-Star appearance at some point in their career: Dirk, Jason Kidd, Shawn Marion, Tyson Chandler, and Peja Stojaković. Former 6th man of the year Jason Terry was another key member of the team, making key shot after key shot down the stretch for the Mavs.

In the early 2000s, the Mavericks featured a unique style of play with the duo of Nowitzki and Steve Nash. From 2001-04, they would lead Dallas to the best offensive rating in the NBA for three straight seasons. However, the duo would never reach the NBA finals, and in 2005, Nash left Dallas for Phoenix in free agency. The Mavericks continued to build an exceptional team around Dirk, culminating in the 2011 championship.