Our next franchise has only been in existence for 35 years. They found immediate success in the 1980s, making the playoffs five years in a row, culminating in a seven-game Western Conference Finals showdown with the eventual league champions. The next decade wasn’t as kind, as they never made the playoffs from 1991 to 2000, and bottomed out with one of the worst teams in league history. Since then, they’ve become one of the league’s model franchises, behind a legendary star and a trailblazing owner. The All-Time Dallas Mavericks team is very good considering their relatively short history, filled with offensive play makers who will make them very difficult to defend.
I’ve already discussed how Steve Nash is one of the greatest offensive players ever; in Dallas, he didn’t reach the MVP heights that he did under Mike D’Antoni, but he was still an all-star player who was one of the best shooters in the NBA. He’ll share the ball-handling duties with Derek Harper, an excellent defender who is one of the best players to have never made an all-star team, and Jason Kidd, who spent early and late years of his brilliant career with the Mavericks. While Kidd wasn’t the force that he was with the Nets or Suns, he was still an elite play maker, who shot over 40 percent from three point range in two of his last four seasons with the team. Rolando Blackman is the team’s starting shooting guard. Blackman was a four-time all-star who peaked during the 1984 season, when he averaged 22.4 PPG while shooting 54.6 percent from the field (he somehow was not honored with an all-star berth that year – go figure). Jason Terry was a hybrid guard who could handle the ball and stretch the defense with his three-point shooting. He was also one of the league’s best sixth men for years, and will be able to play alongside all of the other guards in the rotation.
The starting forwards are the two highest scoring players (on a points per game basis) in team history: Mark Aguirre and Dirk Nowitzki. Aguirre was an incredibly versatile offensive player who was one of the best scorers of the 1980s. He’ll have to play a lesser role on this team than he was used to playing as a Maverick; he led the league in usage percentage in both 1983 and 1984. However, his success as a role player on the two-time champion Detroit Pistons teams demonstrates his adaptability. Nowitzki is the greatest player in franchise history; he may be the best shooting big man the NBA has ever seen, and he makes any team that he plays on an offensive force. Backing them up are two small forwards who experienced great success alongside Nowitzki; Michael Finley, a tremendous athlete who’s another three-point threat, and Josh Howard, who may have been their second best player when they made their first NBA Finals appearance in 2006.
The Mavericks have not had dominant play from the center position in their history; Tyson Chandler may be the best center they’ve ever had, but he’s ineligible for this tournament because he only played on the team for two years. Instead, three big men will share time: Sam Perkins, Roy Tarpley, and James Donaldson. Perkins, AKA “Big Smooth,” played more power forward in Dallas before becoming a center later in his career, and is not an ideal fit alongside Nowitzki, especially on the defensive end of the court. They will create headaches for opponents on offense, however, as both can space the floor and create matchup problems for traditional big men who are used to protecting the paint. Roy Tarpley was an incredible player before personal issues derailed his career; in 17 games in the 1988 playoffs, he averaged 17.9 PPG, 12.9 RPG, and 23.1 PER in 33 MPG off the bench. He’s also a former Sixth Man of the Year Award winner, and will get plenty of minutes as the team’s most talented option at center. James Donaldson was a mammoth player (7’2”, 275 lb), who provided a stabilizing force for the successful Mavericks teams in the 1980s. He and Tarpley will provide this team with rim protection, and should both play well off of Nowitzki.
Overall, this team is full of offensive play makers, but they may struggle against big, physical teams. They’re also lacking on the defensive end, and will need to outscore their opponents to have a chance to compete. The 19th seeded team in our tournament, they have a first-round match up against the All-Time Atlanta Hawks team.
Coach: Rick Carlisle
All-Time Franchise Winning Percentage (through 2014-15): .510