The Dallas Mavericks started out with a relatively tough history, but have been one of the NBA’s top teams since the turn of the millennium. Owner Mark Cuban transformed the franchise, won the first and only championship in Mavericks’ history, and is on track to rebuild another perennial contender. They have been a consistently good franchise and the Dallas Mavericks all-time team is loaded with talent.
All-Time Dallas Mavericks
The Starting Five
Point Guard: Derek Harper
Derek Harper isn’t a standout name in NBA lore but he was a great point guard during his two stints with the Mavericks. First of all, Harper was a loyal Maverick on a relatively new franchise. He spent 12 of his 16 years in the NBA with the Mavericks. Harper is also the team’s all-team leader in assists, registering over 5,000–and nearly 500 more than his closest competition. His greatest achievement was playing an integral role in the Mavericks’ run to the 1988 conference finals. He will always remain an all-time great for the Mavericks’ franchise.
Shooting Guard: Rolando Blackman
Rolando Blackman was the greatest scorer in Mavericks’ history until Dirk Nowitzki‘s arrival. Furthermore, he spent more than a decade with the team and made four different All-Star teams. He has the second-most recorded minutes in franchise history. Accompanying that, he boasts a great field goal percentage for a guard at just under 50 percent. Blackman never made it to the NBA Finals but was a star in a few playoff runs with the Mavericks.
Like Harper, Blackman isn’t spoken about much today, although he helped give the Mavericks a name in the NBA.
Small Forward: Mark Aguirre
Mark Aguirre is another player from the 1980s alongside Harper and Blackman. Aguirre is third in all-time points for Dallas, with nearly 14,000 in eight years. His most prolific season came in 1983-1984 where he averaged over 29 points per game, a higher average than Nowitzki ever achieved.
Aguirre has the highest scoring average in Mavericks’ history, with 24.6 per game. He’s also played the seventh-most minutes in team history and grabbed the sixth-most rebounds. Aguirre secured three All-Star nominations in Dallas.
Power Forward: Dirk Nowitzki
Nowitzki is the greatest Maverick in history and one of the best players to ever play the game of basketball. He will always be a lock for a Dallas Mavericks all-time team. Nowitzki spent all 21 years of his career in Dallas and is the sixth all-time scorer in NBA history.
He leads the Mavericks in nearly everything, from games played, points scored, total rebounds, and field goal/free throw attempts. Nowitzki is the only NBA MVP in Maverick’s history. He led the team to their first championship. Dirk is the embodiment of the Dallas Mavericks.
Center: Tyson Chandler
The Mavericks do not have a great list at the center position, and others have recorded better statistics than Tyson Chandler. Chandler is still an active player who only spent a couple of seasons in Dallas.
When it’s all said and done, however, the Mavericks would not have won their only championship without Chandler. Nowitzki stole the show, but for years the Mavericks had been searching for the right big-man pairing alongside Nowitzki. Chandler was just that. He didn’t need the ball to be effective and was extremely effective in the paint. The Mavericks went up against several all-time greats in their 2011 NBA Finals run such as Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, James Harden, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh. They needed a defensive presence like Chandler.
Chandler still leads the Mavericks with the highest field goal percentage and highest total rebounds per game.
Bench
Guard: Jason Kidd
Jason Kidd is an NBA legend. In all-time stats for the entire league, he ranks second in most assists, second in most steals, and fifth in minutes played.
He started his career in Dallas and picked up Rookie of the Year honors in 1995. His first stint with the Mavericks was short-lived, but he returned in 2008 and was later an integral piece to the 2011 championship run. Kidd was past his prime, but his basketball IQ was vital to the team. He ranks third in assists, third in steals, and fourth in three-pointers made in Mavericks history.
Guard: Michael Finley
Although Michael Finley spent his last years in the league with the rival San Antonio Spurs, he was still a great Maverick. He played a major role alongside Nowitzki and Steve Nash on some of the best all-time Mavericks teams in the early 2000s.
Finley made two All-Star teams and was a consistent 20 points per game scorer and he ranks fifth in total points and games, fourth in minutes played, and third in three-pointers made. He currently serves as the Vice President of Basketball Operations for the team.
Guard: Jason Terry
Jason Terry was Nowitzki’s main sidekick in the post-Nash era. He played a massive role in the Mavericks’ first trip to the Finals in 2006 and was a huge contributor off the bench in the 2011 championship. One of Terry’s most memorable moments in Dallas was getting a tattoo of the Larry O’Brien trophy prior to the 2010-11 season because of his confidence in the team.
Terry ranks sixth in Mavericks’ history in total points and seventh in assists. He also won the Sixth Man of the Year in 2009. He was never a superstar, but always an invaluable piece to the Mavericks’ success.
Big Man: Sam Perkins
Sam Perkins spent six years with the Mavericks. He was consistently a double-double threat and a very solid scorer. He ranks third in total rebounds and eighth in points. Perkins was a great starter alongside Blackman and Aguirre.
Big Man: James Donaldson
James Donaldson wasn’t a flashy player. Instead, he knew what he could do, and did it well. He was a defensive presence and a true big man standing at 7’2″. His defensive instincts speak for themselves, as he ranks second all-time in Dallas history in rebounds and third in blocks.
Coach: Rick Carlisle
Rick Carlisle is the current Mavericks coach and has been for over a decade. He won the team’s first championship and headed a couple of playoff runs. He’s regarded as one of the top coaches in the game right now.
Players who just missed the cut: Nash, Shawn Bradley, Josh Howard.
Main Photo
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