On May 1st, 1980 Don Carter won the bid to bring an NBA franchise to Dallas and the Dallas Mavericks were born. The team would be the 23rd team to join the NBA. The NBA was reluctant to bring a franchise to Dallas since the Houston Rockets and San Antonio Spurs were already in Texas. However, the league owners voted at the 1980 All-Star game to allow the expansion to Dallas. The expansion fee was $12.5 million (roughly $40 million in today’s dollars, adjusted for inflation).

On this date in 1980, we were granted an expansion franchise!

Happy birthday to us MFFL's! 🎉🎂💙 pic.twitter.com/xpD6bMgeMM

— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) May 1, 2018

 

The team name was ultimately decided by fans mailing in post cards with their chosen mascot. 4600 post cards were mailed in and the Mavericks prevailed over the Wranglers and the Express.

Carter’s wife loved basketball which drove him to bid for a franchise, despite the large amount of money it would cost him. He eventually sold the team to Ross Perot Jr. who then sold it to Mark Cuban. Carter was invited on stage when the Mavs won their championship in 2011 and got to hold the trophy. The white Stetson cowboy hat is how Carter is known to Mavs fans and his hat was featured in the original Mavericks logo until it was replaced in 2002 by the current version. Don Carter passed away earlier this year on February 14th in his home in Dallas. The Mavericks will be retiring his iconic cowboy hat in the future.

In their 30 years as a franchise the Mavericks have been to the playoffs 21 times. They have won three division titles, two conference championships, and one NBA championship. The Mavericks have an all time regular and post season record of 1630-1634. Dirk Nowitzki is the only Mavs player to win the NBA Most Valuable Player award. Five Hall of Famers have played for the Mavericks: Steve Nash, Jason Kidd, Dennis Rodman, Alex English, and Adrian Dantley. Nowitzki will be the sixth Hall of Famer to play for the franchise.

In their 30 years as a franchise, the Mavericks have been to the playoffs 21 times. They have won three division titles, two conference championships, and one NBA championship. The Mavericks have an all-time regular and postseason record of 1630-1634. Dirk Nowitzki is the only Mavs player to win the NBA Most Valuable Player award. Five Hall of Famers have played for the Mavericks: Steve Nash, Jason Kidd, Dennis Rodman, Alex English, and Adrian Dantley. Nowitzki will be the sixth Hall of Famer to play for the franchise.