Dallas Mavericks celebrate 40 years as an NBA franchise

The Dallas Mavericks became an NBA franchise on May 1, 1980. They celebrated the 40th anniversary on Friday. Check out how here.

The Dallas Mavericks were not one of the NBA’s original teams. The league started in 1946 with just 11 organizations. It has slowly grown into the 30-team outfit it is today.

On May 1, 1980, the Dallas Mavericks entered the NBA as an expansion franchise. They were the 23rd team. It all began with an expansion draft setting up their roster for that first season in 1980-1981.

The Mavs celebrated its 40th anniversary on Friday. Dwain Price wrote a fantastic look back at that the expansion and their first season for Mavs.com. Fans can read that article here.

Eddie Sefko also ran a piece featuring some of the best quotes from Mavericks’ history.

Current and former players put together a video tribute wishing them a happy 40th. It was led by Mavericks GOAT Dirk Nowitzki.

The Mavs official Twitter put out posts all day in celebration of the franchise’s birthday. Hopefully, it is a great year for the Mavericks as they start their fifth decade as an NBA organization.

Fun facts

Kiki Vandeweghe was the Dallas Mavericks first draft pick in 1980. The UCLA star refused to play for Dallas and was traded to the Nuggets where he was a two-time All-Star.

The Mavs were busy during that first season. They traded for the Cleveland Cavaliers’ first round picks in 1983, 1984, 1985, and 1986 in three separate deals. The transaction spurred what is now known as the Stepien Rule. It also set up the Mavs run of success in the mid-to-late 1980s.

The Mavericks began turning things around in 1981 when they drafted Mark Aguirre, Rolando Blackman, and Jay Vincent in the first round.

They made the playoffs for the first time in 1984.

The Mavericks reached the conference finals for the first time in 1988. They went to the NBA Finals in 2006. The Mavs reached the pinnacle by winning the championship in 2011.

The Dallas Mavericks celebrated their 40th anniversary as a franchise on May 1. Hopefully, the best is yet to come. They are building something special with Luka Doncic at the helm. Stay tuned for an exciting next 40.