Over the last five years, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has taken his team from NBA laughing stock to title contender. The Mavericks made the playoffs in 1990 and then didn’t make another appearance in the postseason until 2001, but since then they’ve made four straight postseasons and won their first series in three of those years while posting at least 52 wins in each season. The team is coached by Don Nelson who ranks among the all-time leaders in wins. Nelson allows his team to play the type of free flowing basketball that only a few teams in the league can play on a consistent basis, namely Sacramento and Denver. After what could be called an adventurous off-season period, the team will look to rebound from last year’s first round playoff exit and make another appearance in the Western Conference finals and potentially the NBA finals.

The off-season talks began after the Lakers imploded in the playoffs and all-star center Shaquille O’Neal demanded a trade out of L.A. He even came out and named Dallas as his team of choice, but the Lakers insisted on forward Dirk Nowitski being involved in the deal, a price Cuban was not willing to pay. Free agent point guard Steve Nash also had his name tossed around in a potential sign and trade deal to Los Angeles but before anything could be worked out, Nash signed a humongous deal with the Phoenix Suns. The Mavericks eventually realized they wouldn’t be able to acquire “The Big Aristotle” and keep Nowitski and they accepted it as O’Neal moved on to Miami. The team drafted Devin Harris, a point guard out of Wisconsin, with the fifth overall pick in the draft, a pick acquired when they shipped Antawn Jamison to Washington for the pick, Jerry Stackhouse, and Christian Laettner. The team also moved Antoine Walker and Tony Delk to Atlanta for Jason Terry and Alan Henderson. Terry will likely start at the point guard spot while Harris learns more about the NBA game. Later in the off-season, the Mavs traded for center Erick Dampier from the Golden State Warriors.

The Mavericks managed to keep most of the foundation of the team in place heading into this season, and the star on a team full of talent is still Dirk Nowitski, the seven footer from Germany. Nowitski averaged nearly 22 ppg, 9 rpg, and 3 apg last season in what could almost be considered a “down” year for him. Nowitski has the ability to post up smaller defenders or take bigger guys out on the wing with him and either shoot over them or blow by them driving by the basket. He also has the skills to play any of the five positions on the court at any time. The addition of Jamison and Walker before the start of last season meant the team had five or six guys who needed to have the ball in their hands to play well, so Nowitski didn’t get as many shots or rebounds as he’s used to getting in most games. This year, Nowitski will team with Michael Finley, Jason Terry, Jerry Stackhouse, and Josh Howard to form one of the top starting lineups in the entire league. Throw in the fact that Marquis Daniels will join Harris and Luis Flores off the bench and the Mavericks could contend deep into the playoffs. Any of the five starters could be an all-star in a given year and all of them can do just about everything on the court.

The new realignment in the NBA will see the Mavericks join cross-state rivals the San Antonio Spurs and the Houston Rockets in the new Southwest division along with the Memphis Grizzlies and the New Orleans Hornets. All five teams in the division made the playoffs last year but the Hornets made their appearance out of the East, so the jury is still out on their move to the West. The Rockets traded for Tracy McGrady, a player widely regarded as one of the best in the league, and the Spurs are led by Tim Duncan, arguably THE best player in the league. Memphis will rotate plenty of young guys in and out and will challenge for a top playoff spot again this season, so Dallas will certainly have their hands full in their own division.

NBA Team Info Home

All Images, Content and Design © 2004 NBATEAMINFO.com