Dallas Mavericks history: 5 all-time players we’re most thankful for

Dallas Mavericks players we’re thankful for: 2. Rolando Blackman

Blackman’s Jersey hangs in the rafters of the American Airlines Center for his dominance on the court, and never-ending loyalty to the Dallas Mavericks franchise. After being one of the team’s first draft picks in 1981, he played 865 games and 11 seasons with the Mavs including making four All-Star appearances.

Blackman along with Derrick Harper, Mark Aguirre, and Brad Davis gave the city of Dallas a team they could be proud of and put them on the map in the NBA. In his best scoring season, Blackman averaged 21.5 points per game on 51.4 percent shooting. From the beginning of the organization, Blackman was one of the most exciting players for fans to watch.

From Moody Madness to the Western Conference Finals to making two free throws to send the 1987 All-Star game into overtime, Blackman helped give the Mavericks respect as a young franchise. Without Blackman, who knows what would have happened to the Mavs. They could have fallen deep into the shadows with the Cowboys in town.

Blackman achieved a top-five offensive win shares season and two seasons in the top 10 in scoring. No matter what happened, his commitment to the organization never wavered. According to RealGM, Blackman served as an assistant coach twice in 2001 and 2005, as well as the Director of Basketball operations since 2006 and as the head of Corporate Relations as of 2019.

From his shooting and scoring expertise to his loyalty and passion for the organization, Blackman has been there every step of the way and all Mavericks fans, no matter how old, should be thankful.

Next: No. 1