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Every NBA fan has his/her own top ten players for each NBA franchise. And while opinions differ on who should be included in an all-time list, there's always one constant: players with the most accolades won are included in the list. However, certain players brought more than just championships to their respective franchises. They changed the franchise's direction for the better.
The Dallas Mavericks may have just won one NBA championship in its 40-season existence but, the Mavs have also produced some of the league's best players of all time. Some found themselves inducted into the Basketball Hall of Hame.
In this piece, I examine the top ten greatest Dallas Mavericks.
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Dirk Nowitzki
The top spot in this list is no-brainer. Dirk Nowitzki, drafted in the 1998 NBA Draft by the Milwaukee Bucks, became the longest-tenured Mav in franchise history -- logging in 21 seasons.
Dirk, hailed as one of the greatest international players to play in the NBA, was a 14-time All-Star, earned 12 All-NBA team selections, an MVP award, and the Mavs to its first NBA championship against the Miami Heat of LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh.
Nowitzki finished his career with averages of 20.7 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 0.8 steals, and 0.8 blocks in 1,522 regular-season games. And yes, jersey number 41 is hanging in the rafters.
Dirk Nowitzki in Game 1 of the 2011 Western Conference Finals
48 PTS - 12/15 FGM - 24/24 FTM
An underrated performance 🔥 pic.twitter.com/eR8GrF9bbT
— White Bball Pains (@WhiteBballPains) May 9, 2023
Luka Doncic
Many might raise their eyebrows for putting Luka Doncic even though he's 25. And while he has yet to breach the top five in the franchise all-time scoring list, he's now the franchise leader in scoring average at 28.7 points per game.
Oh, and he's also leading the Mavs in triple-doubles.
Luka Magic is a five-time All-Star and earned five All-NBA First Team selections. He won the scoring title in the 2023-2024 season when he averaged 33.9 points per game in 70 games. He and Kyrie Irving led the Mavs to the 2024 NBA Finals, where they lost to the Boston Celtics.
The good news for Doncic is that he's still in his prime years, and sooner or later, he will lead the Mavs to a championship.
BREAKING: Luka Doncic has won the "2024 Player of the Year ESPY Award".
(via @espn, h/t @MavsFilmRoom) pic.twitter.com/XMQNOZvM1W
— MFFL NATION (@NationMffl) July 11, 2024
Mark Aguirre
Considered as one of the best small forwards in Mavs history, Mark Aguirre spent eight seasons in Texas.
Aguirre averaged 20.6 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 3.8 assists in 923 regular-season games for Dallas. He even had a stretch of four seasons where he averaged 25 points per game.
Aguirre was a three-time All-Star in a Dallas uniform and won two NBA championships later with the Detroit Pistons. He also served as an assistant coach for the Indiana Pacers and the New York Knicks.
An absolute bucket machine for the Mavs!
Mark Aguirre pic.twitter.com/thsYGzewCc
— IconicPoorly (@IconicPoorly) May 13, 2023
Ronaldo Blackman
Ronaldo Blackman, the Mavs' second all-time leading scorer with 16,643 in a Mavs uniform, was a four-time NBA All-Star.
In 865 regular-season games in Dallas, Blackman averaged 19.2 points. He also holds the franchise record for most free throws made in a game at 22 freebies.
He later had a stint with the New York Knicks before moving overseas.
Blackman's jersey number 22 has been retired by the Mavs.
Ronaldo Blackman was to have players like MJ , worthy , magic and bird slipping. 20 ppg . Unselfish and good defender. Athletic 6’6. Those mavs late 80s teams were stacked. #nba pic.twitter.com/JXhzghUdi6
— Martin Brian Ansah (@DaAnsahonSports) March 24, 2018
Derek Harper
Derek Harper spent 11 and a half seasons in Dallas. And even though he has fewer accolades than other players on this list, Harper's jersey number 12 is up in the rafters.
Harper averaged 14.4 points, 5.8 assists, and 1.8 steals for the Mavs in 862 regular-season games. He was more recognized for his defensive smarts that earned him two selections to the All-NBA Defensive Second Team.
Harper also played for the New York Knicks, the Orlando Magic, and the Los Angeles Lakers.
Join Mavs Nation in wishing Derek Harper a happy 59th birthday! 🎉🎂 pic.twitter.com/Gb6PuLVz75
— Mavs Nation (@MavsNationCP) October 13, 2020
Michael Finley
Michael Finley is one of the best two-way players in Dallas basketball history.
In nine seasons with the Mavs primarily alongside Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash, Finley averaged 19.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 1.2 steals in 626 regular-season games. Finley was a two-time All-Star and led the league in minutes played twice. He also owns the top spot in the franchise leaderboard in minutes at 39.7 minutes a contest.
He later won an NBA championship with the San Antonio Spurs in 2007. Finley also played for the Phoenix Suns and the Boston Celtics.
The dunker’s dunker.
Michael Finley selected dunks (Mavs).
🎵: Paid In Full ( The Coldcut Remix)pic.twitter.com/uy5zE3ZqvU
— Dunk Comp (@DUNKC0MP) July 30, 2022
Steve Nash
No all-time top ten Mavs list will be complete without Dirk Nowitzki's pick-and-pop partner in Steve Nash.
Together with Dirk and Finley, Steve Nash formed one of the earliest Big Threes in the 2000s. As the Robin to Dirk's Batman, Nash averaged 14.6 points and 7.2 assists and earned back-to-back All-Star selections.
Many observers believe Steve Nash would have been higher on this list had he played longer alongside Dirk Nowitzki and who knows? The duo would have won a title together had they stuck with each other.
Nash won two MVP awards with the Phoenix Suns and also had a forgettable run with the Los Angeles Lakers alongside Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard.
April 28, 2001: Steve Nash with a circus shot in Game 3 of the Mavs' first round series with the Jazz.
Nash finished with 16 PTS and Dirk Nowitzki had 33 PTS/10 REB in Dallas' 94-91 win (which cut Utah's best-of-5 series lead to 2-1). Karl Malone had 29 PTS/13 REB for the Jazz. pic.twitter.com/38KFrmvGfH
— NBA Cobwebs (@NBACobwebs) April 28, 2023
Josh Howard
Believe it or not, Josh Howard is on the top ten all-time scoring list of the Mavs despite only playing from 2003 to 2010 - garnering 6,614 points that put him in tenth place.
Howard, the 29th pick in the 2003 NBA Draft, averaged 15.3 points and six rebounds while shooting a scorching 45.4% from the field. In the 2006-2007 season, Josh Howard was named an All-Star in a season that saw him average 19.8 points and seven rebounds.
👏Former Mavs All-Star forward Josh Howard has been named head coach of UNT-Dallas.👏
Congrats Coach: https://t.co/nJPmJ5E5IR pic.twitter.com/25VmQRmH3i
— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) April 17, 2020
Jason Terry
Jason Terry played in Dallas for eight seasons and averaged 16.1 points, 4.1 assists, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.2 steals while shooting 38.8% from the three-point line. He sits in third place on the all-time franchise three-point makes with 1,140 threes.
In helping Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Kidd win the NBA championship in 2011 against a star-studded Miami Heat team, Jason Terry averaged 18 points, 3.2 assists, and two rebounds in six games.
He also won the Sixth Man of the Year in 2009.
In the 2011 Finals…
Jason Terry: LeBron James:
18.0 PPG 17.8 PPG
49.4% FG 47.8% FG
39.3% 3P 32.1% 3P— JET played 67 less minutes & STILL outscored the “King”. pic.twitter.com/xMzH9T2bKX
— MavsMuse (@MavsMuse) August 10, 2023
Jason Kidd
Another Jason is on the list and like the Jason above, Jason Kidd played an important role en route to Dallas' only NBA title so far.
Kidd began his NBA career with the Mavs and at that point in his career, he never averaged below 7.7 assists and 1.9 steals per game from 1994 to 1997.
In his second stint in Dallas from 2008 to 2012, Jason Kidd was already at the twilight of his playing career but still proved he was among the elite point guards in the NBA.
In the 2011 NBA Finals, Jason Kidd averaged 7.7 points, 6.3 assists, and 4.5 rebounds.
As a head coach of the Mavs, he steered the team to another NBA Finals appearance in 2024 only to get overwhelmed by the Dallas Mavericks.
Jason Kidd was a ten-time All-Star, had five selections to the All-NBA First Team, four All-NBA Defensive First Team selections, and a five-time league leader in assists.
Jason Kidd just became the 1st person EVER to reach the NBA Finals as a player & coach for the same team pic.twitter.com/LdUNduHRIi
— MavsMuse (@MavsMuse) May 31, 2024
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