2000–01 Dallas Mavericks season

The 2000–01 Dallas Mavericks season was the 21st season for the Dallas Mavericks in the National Basketball Association.^[1] The Mavericks received the twelfth overall pick in the 2000 NBA draft, and selected power forward Etan Thomas out of Syracuse University.^[2][3][4] However, before the start of the regular season, Thomas suffered a toe injury, and would never play for the Mavericks.^[5][6][7]

The Mavericks also made several trades on draft day; the team acquired shooting guard, and first-round draft pick Courtney Alexander out of Fresno State University from the Orlando Magic, power forward, and first-round draft pick Donnell Harvey out of the University of Florida from the New York Knicks, and power forward, and second-round draft pick Eduardo Nájera out of the University of Oklahoma from the Houston Rockets.^[8][2][3] During the off-season, the team acquired Christian Laettner and Loy Vaught from the Detroit Pistons in two separate trades,^[9][10][11] and acquired Howard Eisley from the Utah Jazz in a four-team trade.^[12][13][14]

After ten seasons of struggling, the Mavericks showed improvement by winning ten of their first fifteen games of the regular season, and played above .500 in winning percentage for the entire season, as the team held a 31–19 record at the All-Star break.^[15] At mid-season, the Mavericks traded Laettner, Thomas, Vaught, Alexander and Hubert Davis to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Juwan Howard, second-year center Calvin Booth, and second-year forward Obinna Ekezie.^[16][17][18] The team also signed free agent Vernon Maxwell, who was previously released by the Philadelphia 76ers.^[19][20] The Mavericks finished in third place in the Midwest Division with a 53–29 record, earned the fifth seed in the Western Conference,^[21] and qualified for the NBA playoffs for the first time since the 1989–90 season, ending a ten-year playoff drought.^[1]

Dirk Nowitzki averaged 21.8 points and 9.2 rebounds per game, led the Mavericks with 151 three-point field goals, and was named to the All-NBA Third Team, while Michael Finley averaged 21.5 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.4 steals per game, and Howard provided the team with 17.8 points and 7.1 rebounds per game in 27 games after the trade. In addition, Steve Nash showed improvement averaging 15.6 points and 7.3 assists per game, while Eisley contributed 9.0 points and 3.6 assists per game, along with 107 three-point field goals, and Shawn Bradley provided with 7.1 points, 7.4 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game.^[22]

During the NBA All-Star weekend at the MCI Center in Washington, D.C., Finley was selected for the 2001 NBA All-Star Game, as a member of the Western Conference All-Star team; it was his second and final All-Star appearance.^[23][24][25] Meanwhile, Nowitzki and Nash both participated in the NBA Three-Point Shootout; it was the second consecutive year that Nowitzki participated in the Three-Point Shootout.^[26][27] Nash also finished in third place in Most Improved Player voting, while Nowitzki finished tied in fifth place,^[28][29] and head coach Don Nelson finished in third place in Coach of the Year voting.^[30][29]

In the Western Conference First Round of the 2001 NBA playoffs, the Mavericks faced off against the 4th–seeded Utah Jazz, who were led by All-Star forward Karl Malone, Bryon Russell, and All-Star guard John Stockton. The Mavericks lost the first two games to the Jazz on the road, which included a Game 2 loss at the Delta Center by a score of 109–98, as the Jazz took a 2–0 series lead.^[31][32][33] However, the Mavericks managed to win the next two games at home, including a Game 4 win over the Jazz at the Reunion Arena, 107–77 to even the series.^[34][35][36] The Mavericks won Game 5 over the Jazz at the Delta Center, 84–83 to win in a hard-fought five-game series; the team won their first NBA playoff series since the 1987–88 season.^[37][38][39]

In the Western Conference Semi-finals, the team faced off against the top–seeded, and Midwest Division champion San Antonio Spurs, who were led by All-Star forward Tim Duncan, All-Star center David Robinson, and Derek Anderson. The Spurs took a 3–0 series lead, but the Mavericks managed to win Game 4 at the Reunion Arena, 112–108.^[40] However, the Mavericks lost Game 5 to the Spurs on the road, 105–87 at the Alamodome, thus losing the series in five games.^[41][42][43]

The Mavericks finished 14th in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 680,238 at the Reunion Arena during the regular season;^[22][44] it was also the team's final season playing at the Reunion Arena. Following the season, Eisley was traded to the New York Knicks in a three-team trade,^[45][46][47] while Gary Trent signed with the Minnesota Timberwolves,^[48][49] Booth signed with the Seattle SuperSonics,^[50] Ekezie was released to free agency, and Maxwell retired.