Dallas Mavericks

The Dallas Mavericks combine big-market ambition with a legacy of international superstar talent, from Dirk Nowitzki's unstoppable fadeaway to Luka Doncic's playmaking brilliance. The franchise has built a reputation for both flashy offense and, at its best, gritty championship-level defense. Dallas fans expect their team to compete for titles and to do it with star power on the floor.

The Mavericks entered the NBA as an expansion franchise in 1980 and spent their first decade establishing themselves before a long playoff drought in the 1990s. Dirk Nowitzki, drafted in 1998, became the face of the franchise and led Dallas to its lone NBA championship in 2011, upsetting the heavily favored Miami Heat. The Mavericks later reinvented themselves around Luka Doncic, who has continued the franchise's tradition of building around a transcendent international star.