Still haunting them?

[lefty]

In 1982, the Utah Jazz drafted some guy named Dominique Wilkins and traded him right away to Atlanta for some guys and some cash

In 1984, the Blazers drafted Sam Bowie instead of Michael Jordan...mm...Drexler+Jordan ...could have been something for Blazers fans, and nothing for Bulls fans

in 1996 , the Hornets drafted Kobe Bryant and traded him right away to L.A for Divac ; Jerry West's genius or Hornets' stupidity???

1998 ; the Bucks draft Nowitizki and trade him to Dallas for...."Tractor" Traylor

[monosylab1k]

1998 ; the Bucks draft Nowitizki and trade him to Dallas for...."Tractor" Traylor

I hate to admit it, but I hated this trade at the time.

95% of HONEST Mavs fans will admit much of the same.

At the time, when Traylor was drafted everyone was thinking "Yes! A big bruiser who can dominate down low!"

And when they traded him for Dirk, everyone was thinking "WTF??!?!?! Some in' German kid??!?!?! YOU Don Nelson!!! YOU UP YOUR ASS!!!"

The rare few who actually followed the Mavs before the massive bandwagon came around will remember this.

[lefty]

I hate to admit it, but I hated this trade at the time.

95% of HONEST Mavs fans will admit much of the same.

At the time, when Traylor was drafted everyone was thinking "Yes! A big bruiser who can dominate down low!"

And when they traded him for Dirk, everyone was thinking "WTF??!?!?! Some in' German kid??!?!?! YOU Don Nelson!!! YOU UP YOUR ASS!!!"

The rare few who actually followed the Mavs before the massive bandwagon came around will remember this.

Back then, I had the feeling Dirk could succeed in the NBA, because they showed footages of Dirk working hard : dribbling, shooting for hours and hours a la Larry Bird...and u know hard work pays off

[monosylab1k]

Back then, I had the feeling Dirk could succeed in the NBA, because they showed footages of Dirk working hard : dribbling, shooting for hours and hours a la Larry Bird...and u know hard work pays off

Yeah i remember that footage of him in Germany that Nellie was trying to use to convince everyone that Dirk had skill....at the time though, the vast majority of Mavs fans didn't care and hated the deal mainly because we thought we had just drafted another Chris Anstey or Uwe Blab.

[lefty]

The Bucks already had Ray Allen and Big Dog Robinson ; put Nowitzki as a PF and u have something.

[monosylab1k]

The Bucks already had Ray Allen and Big Dog Robinson ; put Nowitzki as a PF and u have something.

Didn't they have Cassell back then too? Man, that would have been a great team if they didn't make one of the worst trades in NBA history.

[lefty]

Didn't they have Cassell back then too? Man, that would have been a great team if they didn't make one of the worst trades in NBA history.

Correct ; they had Sam too

[dallaskd]

I hate to admit it, but I hated this trade at the time.

95% of HONEST Mavs fans will admit much of the same.

At the time, when Traylor was drafted everyone was thinking "Yes! A big bruiser who can dominate down low!"

And when they traded him for Dirk, everyone was thinking "WTF??!?!?! Some in' German kid??!?!?! YOU Don Nelson!!! YOU UP YOUR ASS!!!"

The rare few who actually followed the Mavs before the massive bandwagon came around will remember this.

Dirk was horrible his first season. i thought he was gonna be a Pavel Podkolzin or Evan Eshmeyer. We knew he could score but i never saw him doing this.

[P-O-Z]

dirk and nash was very bad then one day they became like best friends and practice together that why they are so good offensively

[RonMexico]

The rare few who actually followed the Mavs before the massive bandwagon came around will remember this.

First Mavs fan ever to admit there is a bandwagon... thank you... you've earned some major points.

[bulletedge]

Yep, I thought it was a stupid trade at the time. Especially considering that the Mavs had never had a low post bruiser...come to think of it, they still haven't had one.

[monosylab1k]

First Mavs fan ever to admit there is a bandwagon... thank you... you've earned some major points.

I don't see how Mavs fans COULDN'T admit that a gigantic ass bandwagon has developed. There obviously aren't too many who remember 10 years ago when barely 6000 people would show up to Reunion Arena. There aren't too many who remember that the team's advertising campaign used to be "Come Grow With Us"....which basicallly means "come watch a bunch of young players that aren't any good get murdered every night".

The bandwagon Mavs fans showed mild interest the one year when the Three-J's had a halfway decent (actually pretty mediocre) season. They took a peek, saw that the team still sucked, and went right back to rooting for the Lakers.

And, to me, the biggest thing of all.......only a bandwagoner would ever boo Michael Finley. Anybody who's been a fan of the team for any real length of time realizes just how much he did for the Mavs organization back when the Mavs organization couldn't do anything right. The man deserves a standing ovation every time he steps foot in the AAC. It was probably the most embarrassing moment in Mavericks history when he got booed.

[Viva Las Espuelas]

I wish someone had the pictures of Nash and Dirk when they signed with the mavs. They looked like dorks. If I recall, their haircuts were something else.

[BigBinBigD]

No bandwaggoner here. I've been a season-ticket holder since 1985. I never wanted Tractor. I remember the first pre-season game I saw Dirk play, I said to my bro at halftime, "This kid's gonna be real good." You could see it in his shot right away. Sure, he had a LONG way to go, but you can't shoot the ball the way he does and not have a ton of success.

As for Finley, he was a pretty good player on a really bad team. Those are a dime a dozen. When the torch started to be passed to Dirk, he couldn't stand it. Whenever Dirk hit a big shot or had a big game, it's almost as if Finley resented it. Never once do I remember him being happy for Dirk or even high-fiving him (back when they did that).

Call me anti-Mav if you want, but I always thought Finley was WAY overrated. I still have nightmares over that forced fade-away jumper of his. And his lack of dribbling severly negated his one asset, getting to the hole and dunking. And when they maxed him out, I remember thinking that was a HUGE mistake. Now it's obvious I was right. Nash and Dirk are what turned this franchise around.

[monosylab1k]

As for Finley, he was a pretty good player on a really bad team. Those are a dime a dozen.

He was alot more than just that. He promoted the team, he believed in the team, and he stuck around and was the one guy that Mavs fans could be proud of back when the team was horrendous. He played his heart out every night even when he knew the team had no chance of winning. He gave everything he had for years as a member of this team, and while it was the right move to release him, it is an absolute embarrassment to real Mavericks fans that Finley got booed last season.

As far as your claim that he was jealous of Dirk, it makes me doubt you've ever watched the Mavericks in your life. Finley's never had any jealousy towards Dirk, and he's celebrated with him just like everyone else. And episode of Punk'd even showed the two going out to eat together. Just because he wasn't as good of friends with Dirk as Nash doesn't mean he was in any way jealous of him. Without Michael Finley, the Dallas Mavericks do not even come close to having the success they have right now.

[BigBinBigD]

I'd be willing to bet a WHOLE lot I've watched more Mavs games than you, pal. Just glad I don't have to watch Finley clanking up bricks and dribbling around as if he has mitts on his hands very often anymore. And REAL glad I don't have to pay him that ridiculous, never-warranted salary.

[monosylab1k]

I'd be willing to bet a WHOLE lot I've watched more Mavs games than you, pal. Just glad I don't have to watch Finley clanking up bricks and dribbling around as if he has mitts on his hands very often anymore. And REAL glad I don't have to pay him that ridiculous, never-warranted salary.

There's a difference between watching and understanding what's going on. If you think all Finley did was "clank up bricks" and "dribble around" then you obviously didn't get the bigger picture. Was he perfect? No. Was he way overpaid? Yes. But he contributed SIGNIFICANTLY to this team, and he is a BIG reason why they're as good as they are today. Trying to negate what Finley did for this organization smacks of bandwagonner talk.

[BigBinBigD]

I've only been playing/coaching/watching for 40 years so I guess I don't understand yet. Maybe in time.

Let's just agree to disagree. We're both fans of the same team.

[monosylab1k]

I've only been playing/coaching/watching for 40 years so I guess I don't understand yet. Maybe in time.

The game has changed alot in 40 years.

I just don't see how anybody would want/try to cheapen what Finley did for the Mavericks organization. Especially with completely unfounded claims of his "jealousy" towards Dirk.

[mavsfan1000]

I thought this was another mavs-heat thread. Glad it wasn't.

[BigBinBigD]

I didn't say I quit watching 40 years ago. Good lord, I'm aware of the changes.

And I know someone who used to play with Dirk and Finley so my opinions are a little more than unfounded.

[monosylab1k]

I didn't say I quit watching 40 years ago. Good lord, I'm aware of the changes.

And I know someone who used to play with Dirk and Finley so my opinions are a little more than unfounded.

Who is this "someone"??? Do you have any proof whatsoever? If you expect to make some sort of bold claim like this, you better be ready to back it up. Until then, I think you're full of .

There's plenty of quotes and pictures showing Finley fully supporting Dirk. Never an iota of jealousy. I can post them all day long if necessary.

And, even though I don't believe it for one second, supposing there even was some jealousy, Finley would NEVER publicly show it because he cared first and foremost about the TEAM. Another reason why it's so horrible and embarrassing that some Mavs fans want to try and cheapen the accomplishments of one of the classiest men to ever be a part of this team.

[clambake]

Don't forget, the mavs passed up karl malone for detlef schremf.

[kskonn]

Who is this "someone"??? Do you have any proof whatsoever? If you expect to make some sort of bold claim like this, you better be ready to back it up. Until then, I think you're full of .

There's plenty of quotes and pictures showing Finley fully supporting Dirk. Never an iota of jealousy. I can post them all day long if necessary.

And, even though I don't believe it for one second, supposing there even was some jealousy, Finley would NEVER publicly show it because he cared first and foremost about the TEAM. Another reason why it's so horrible and embarrassing that some Mavs fans want to try and cheapen the accomplishments of one of the classiest men to ever be a part of this team.

I could be wrong but you seem like you would know. Wasn't Dirk the guy who sat with finley after they got eliminated a few years back and tried to convince him that He was not being cut because of court issues? I think he even tried to convince him that he was not goint to get cut at all? I also know I have heard Dirk speak of how much finley helped him when he got to the NBA.

Obviously I don't follow the Mavs like I do the Spurs but it seems like I distinctly remember Finley or Dirk talking about all of this.

[Purple & Gold]

That's when Jerry West was at his best.

Although Vlade has always been a very good player even after that. Ask the Queens fans.