4 Dallas Mavericks players you forgot were All-Stars

3. Chris Gatling, 1997

In the 1990s, losing was very common for the Mavericks. The Mavs missed the playoffs for a decade from 1991-2000. During the playoff drought, there were a few good small moments in the history of the franchise.

The Mavs were looking for a big man to help make the team better in 1996 to help Jason Kidd who was the 1995 Rookie of the Year. To help Kidd, the team signed Chris Gatling who was coming off of back-to-back season finishing in the top 10 in Sixth Man of the Year voting.

On a bad Mavs team, Gatling thrived coming off the bench for Dallas. In 44 games, Gatling averaged 19.1 points per game, and 7.9 rebounds to represent the Mavericks in the 1997 NBA All-Star Game. Gatling looked to be a player that would be a force for years in Dallas, but it wouldn't happen.

Just days after the 1997 All-Star Game, Gatling was traded to the New Jersey Nets. Gatling graduated from Elizabeth High School in Elizabeth, New Jersey, so going to New Jersey may have felt like a homecoming, but Gatling played three games for the Nets after the trade.

Gatling would go on to play five more seasons after 1997. After playing in Italy for the 2002-03 season, Gatling's basketball career came to an end. Gatling's only All-Star appearance would come with the Mavs.