Erick Dampier

Before the 2011 NBA Finals Start, One More Look Back at 2006 to Put Into Perspective Why This Series is So Dang Important

Sorry to pee on your Memorial Day barbecue, but you gotta get mad one more time before we can get even. Revenge, after all, is best served ... in South Beach. I know only Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry remain for the Mavericks and Udonis Haslem and Dwyane Wade remain on the Heat from the 2006 ... More >>

Beat the Raptors Into Extinction

Butler and Chandler Lead Mavs to Best Road Start in Franchise History; Nowitzki Passes Larry Legend on All-Time Scoring List

Stolen from the Bobcats in deal for Matt Carroll, Eduardo Najera and effin' Erick Dampier, Tyson Chandler's a big reason why Dallas is off to such a great start.​The Mavericks continued to prove that they're indeed the best team in the league as they improved their road record to a franchise-best ... More >>

Ready or Not, Here Comes Basketball Season

​With the Cowboys' hopes buried, the Rangers' pursuit of Cliff Lee still a week from climax and the leftover turkey all but scarfed, time for your Mavericks to snatch our attention. If they haven't already. In case you're one of those that refuses to pay attention to basketball before Th ... More >>

The Big German Takes on King James

Don't Look Now, But Your Dallas Mavericks Have a Decent Center

Danny Bollinger​Can't remember the last time Erick Dampier had 12 points on perfect shooting and 13 rebounds in a win over an elite opponent. I'm sure it happened, but not nearly enough. That's why, in part, Dampier was traded in the off-season for Tyson Chandler. The positive effects for t ... More >>

Yet Again, Shawn Bradley is Benched

​Hadn't thought of the former Dallas Mavericks center in years -- certainly, not since his retirement from the National Basketball Association in 2005. Who knew the way-too-longtime Mav was running for a seat in the Utah House of Representatives? But, sure enough: "I have been fortunate in life to ... More >>

Dallas Mavericks Pick a Really Bad Night to Start the 2010-11 Season

​Poor Mark Cuban. With his billions and success, seems weird to type that. But think of his plight: In August he came this close to buying the Texas Rangers. Now not only are those same Rangers on the verge of winning the World Series, they're taking a big steamy, stinky one on his Dallas Ma ... More >>

Whitt's End: 10.1.10

​Whether you're at the end of your rope or merely the end of your week, welcome to Whitt's End: *Sobering number right outta the gate: Since July 1 the Texas Rangers are 42-40. Are we fooling ourselves thinking they're an elite team that can actually win a playoff series against one of the ... More >>

Oh Yeah, About Your Dallas Mavericks

​The Rangers are back in the playoffs. The Cowboys are back in the race. And look now, but the Dallas Mavericks are back in training camp. Yes, already. Just five months after they walked off the court in the wake of another disappointing first-round playoff loss (this one to the San Ant ... More >>

The Mavs Finally Make Their Move, and the Rangers Trump Them?

​Hope Mark Cuban enjoyed his love, because now comes a dose of reality. As much as I was excited by the Texas Rangers' trade for pitching ace Cliff Lee, I was disappointed by the Dallas Mavericks' big summer shocker: Erick Dampier and his long-coveted expiring contract for ... A backup c ... More >>

A Dirk-less Dallas: Cringe at the Thought

​Some ignoamus loyal reader on this here blog recently theorized that the Dallas Mavericks sans Dirk Nowitzki could still make the NBA Western Conference playoffs. It's July 1, not April 1. Quit your kidding. Because the Mavs realize that Dirk is priority No. 1 this summer - and perhaps vice- ... More >>

Dallas Mavericks: Where Do We Go Now?

​I was really excited - re-invested, as it were - in the Dallas Mavericks and this year's NBA Playoffs. The team was poised. The games are fun. The conversations about the games are entertaining. The city is empowered by the wins and somehow galvanized by the losses. But, alas, the circus ten ... More >>

GAME 6: Spurs 97, Mavs 87. My Top 10 Observations.

Another year, another painful playoff loss.​10. The Mavericks are now the only NBA team to lose in the first round of the playoffs as a No. 1 and No. 2 seed. Granted the four-time champion Spurs aren't your pedestrian No. 7 seed, but it's still an ugly epitaph to have etched on your tombsto ... More >>

GAME 5: Mavs 103, Spurs 81. My Top 10 Observations.

Game. On.​10. Welcome to the playoffs, Tuff Juice. Caron Butler set the tone last night at the raucous American Airlines Center. 35 points and 11 rebounds were nice. But it was his aggression - and 0 turnovers - that punched the Spurs in the face. 9. Game 6 is Thursday night in San Antonio. ... More >>

GAME 2: Spurs 102, Mavs 88. My Top 10 Observations

​10. Give Spurs coach Gregg Popovich credit. His "dogs" played harder and better than Dallas. In fact, they jumped to a 9-0 lead and basically used the Mavs as a fire hydrant. 9. Watching Erick Dampier and Brendan Haywood, it's Dallas' best center duo since Gana Diop was here with Damp in '06 ... More >>

Mavericks 100, Spurs 94: My Top 10 Observations

​10. Asked Mavs owner Mark Cuban on his Stairmaster last night if he was serious about his story of almost imploding the team in late January before finding the Caron Butler trade: "Absolutely the truth. Ask my wife." 9. In crunch time, it was Jason Kidd on Manu Ginobli. He doesn't always sto ... More >>

Is Brendan Haywood Already the Best Mavericks' Center Ever?

Still the best?​No, but he's close. Not that the Washington Wizard-turned-Maverick hasn't played impressively in his first four games in Dallas (10.8 points, 8.8 rebounds), but it says more about our sad history than his play, doesn't it? Haywood, part of last week's trade that sent J ... More >>

After 7-Player Trade, Your Mavericks are Better. But How Much Better?

New Mav Caron Butler​Three years ago to the day I loved Josh Howard. But this morning I'm thrilled that he's no longer a Dallas Maverick. Why? Because lost in the parties and record-setting crowd of NBA All-Star Weekend was a seven-player trade that both re-shaped the Mavs' roster and re-bo ... More >>

There's an Untouchable Maverick not Named Dirk Nowitzki?

Danny Bollinger The Untouchable?​Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is grumpy. Understandably so. His team has lost 5 of 7 - punctuated by last night's embarrassing 36-point loss in Denver - heading into NBA All-Star Weekend right here in his own backyard. Cuban has apparently scrapped ... More >>

10. As in, Ten Consecutive Narrow Escapes For Your Dallas Mavericks

Are the Mavs lucky or just dang good?​Mavericks 108, Bucks 107 last night. Partly thanks to coach Rick Carlisle's meticulous end-game sets, and sometimes because they've just been lucky, the Mavs have won 10 consecutive one-point games. The feat ties the NBA record set by the St. Louis Hawk ... More >>

Mavs Whip Hapless Knicks by Half-a-Hundred, But is it the Biggest Ass-Whipping in Metroplex Sports History?

​No Jason Kidd. No Erick Dampier. No momentum. No prisoners. Was dilly-daddling around the house yesterday with a rare Sunday off (thanks, Cowboys). Had the Mavs-Knicks on the TV and it was something like 35-30 early in the second quarter. Next thing I know Roddy Beaubois is raining 3-pointer ... More >>

Whitt's End: 11.13.09

​Whether you're at the end of your rope or merely the end of your week, welcome to Whitt's End: *OK, so let it be known that my buddy and Ticket founding father Mike Rhyner has been/is calling for a Cowboys' appearance in this year's Super Bowl. This, after 14-plus years as president of the a ... More >>

It Ain't Hump Day ... It's Sick Day. Mother Effer.

​For a couple weeks I coughed and sneezed and hacked and blew and ... denied. Last night I gave up and went to the doctor. Sure enough: Swine Flu. AIDS. Walking Pneumonia. Sorry, but today I gotta make this - ahhhhhchooooo! - short and sweet: *Rick Carlisle gets mad and Erick Dampier gets wha ... More >>

If You Missed This Morning's NBA All-Star Game Voting Kick-Off Press Conference ...

... a behind-the-scenester was there to capture the whole thing, from pre-game to big finish. Here's the formal how-do, featuring Voice of the Dallas Mavericks Mark Followill introducing Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert (who has "instituted many policies that have dramatically improved the quality of life ... More >>

Bang For Your Buck? The Worst Contracts in the History of Dallas/Fort Worth That I Can Think Off the Top of My Head.

​Jerry Jones signing DeMarcus Ware to a 6-year, $78 million contract is probably going to pay off in the long room. Ware is a good person, a great player and - barring something terribly unforeseen - a decent bargain. One thing Jerry's proven over his tenure is that he isn't afraid to ov ... More >>

Mark Cuban: Super Bowl or Bust?

​It wasn't exactly as declarative as when Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones injected his all-or-nothing expectations into the season a month ago, but Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban believes his team is as good - actually, better - than the one that went to the NBA Finals in 2006. "The ... More >>

Gooden-Uff

Done Deals? Your 2009-10 Dallas Mavericks

The missing link? Or merely the last move?​Well, after yesterday's signing of 3-point shooting specialist Tim Thomas I think the Dallas Mavericks are finished with their significant off-season moves. Of course, at points during the summer I also thought Marcin Gortat was coming, Brandon Bas ... More >>

Whitt's End: 7.24.09

Whether you're at the end of your rope or merely the end of your week, welcome to Whitt's End: *Once upon a time Walter Cronkite was the "most trusted man in America." His death got me wondering who wears that crown today? The answer hurts: Oprah. *Sure smells like the Dallas Mavericks - who lo ... More >>

Your 2009-10 Dallas Mavericks?!

I's aren't dotted. T's aren't crossed. Some negotiations aren't finished. Others haven't even started. But let's assume smooth sailing and peer into the crystal basketball. With the Dallas Mavericks eyeing Shawn Marion, this could be their opening-night roster: Point Guard: Jason Kidd/ J.J. Bar ... More >>

D.J. Mbenga 1, Dirk Nowitzki 0

Watching the Lakers party in Orlando last night - I was wrong about L.A. in 4, but just barely -was a reminder how cruel sports can be. While former Mavericks D.J. Mbenga and Josh Powell hugged and kissed the NBA's Larry O'Brien championship trophy, current Maverick Dirk Nowitzki is l ... More >>

Can the Mavs Draft Their Way Back Into Contention?

Danny Bollinger After him, Dallas' draft history this decade gets really bad really quick.As we prepare to watch the Lakers turn the Thuggets (L.A. in 7) into mere mortals in the Western Conference Finals, let's ponder what the Mavs can do to get back into the NBA's final four. *Re-sign Jaso ... More >>

Mavericks-Nuggets: A Requiem in 5 Predictable Parts

No Jason Terry. No Gatorade dump. Hindsight, they say, is 20/20. Sometimes, unfortunately, so is foresight. On Friday, May 1 I picked the Denver Nuggets to eliminate the Dallas Mavericks in five games. Last night it came to pass, in the form of Nuggets 124, Mavs 110. Dirk Nowitzki was as grit ... More >>

Mavs-Nuggets: Irrationally Optimistic Game 3 Preview

Danny Bollinger Bite the bullet, Josh. Or your jersey. Whatever works.Before Game 1: Doubtless. After Game 1: Defiant. Before Game 2: Determined. After Game 2: Depressed. Before Game 3: Desperate? Delusional? Dead? Fine, then you tell me. For my prediction of Thuggets in 5 to remain in play, ... More >>

Sheepish Mavericks 96, Shitty Timberwolves 94

Because the Mavs beat one of the worst teams in the NBA, they may get to avoid playing the best. Embarrassing that the Dallas Mavericks had to pull a leftover Easter rabbit out of their hat last night against the Minnesota Timberwolves at American Airlines Center. But in this economy ... sorr ... More >>

Houston, We Have a ... Three-Game Winning Streak?

5-7 is looking pretty good right about now, huh? When you get a break from resurrecting the Cowboys, take a minute to not bury the Mavericks either. On the brink of a 2-8 start Monday night, the Mavericks last night beat the Rockets in Houston for their third consecutive victory. Even bett ... More >>

Overhauled and Underrated, the Mavericks Are Priced to Sell

Regular Season Don't Mean Nothin'. At Least, You Gotta Hope Not.

Scattershooting … With All Due Respect

Meet the Dallas Mavericks -- They're, Like, "Underdogs." Riiiight.

Whoa, Nellie

Popeye Jones Musta Taken His Spinach

No Witzki

Happy New Team!

Hey, Now, You're An All-Star

Diesel Does Dallas

All About Me | Easy on Erick | HP, Blah, Blah | Hiding in Plain View

The Dallas Donuts

Can Dampier finally fill Mavs' middle?

New Kids on the Block

The Nash-less Mavs try to hang tough and build a winning team from scratch