1986-1987 Dallas Mavericks: Proving Themselves

July 1st, 2026
By Marneen Zahavi
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During the 1980’s teams like the Dallas Mavericks were trying to find their way in the NBA, having trouble to establish an identity for themselves as to what kind of team they wanted to be. The Mavericks did not have a storied tradition of winning basketball games, but in the 1980’s they did have some talent on their roster that stood out, and some of this talent would go on to make names for themselves with other NBA teams.

In the 1986-1987 NBA season the Dallas Mavericks went 55-27, finishing 10 games behind the Los Angeles Lakers for the top seed in the Western Conference, but won the Midwest Division by 11 games over the Utah Jazz. In head-to-head play the Mavericks went 4-2 against the Denver Nuggets and San Antonio Spurs, and 3-3 against the Houston Rockets.

One of the few stars the Mavericks of the 1980’s had was small forward Mark Aguirre, who would be better known as one of the enforcers on the “Bad Boy” Detroit Pistons teams. Aguirre had a mean streak in him and a fire that was hard to put out as he made opponents pay if they tried to play rough with him on the court. Aguirre had 2,056 total points, 427 rebounds, 254 assists and 84 steals, making 787 of 1,590 field goal shots, 53 of 150 3-point shots and 429 of 557 free throws.

Shooting guard Rolando Blackman was also a stud for the Mavericks as he was a player who could easily get to the basket. Blackman had 1,676 total points and 266 assists, making 626 of 1,264 field goal shots and 419 of 476 free throws. Point guard Derek Harper had 1,230 total points, 609 assists and 167 steals, making 497 of 993 field goal shots, 76 of 212 3-point shots and 160 of 234 free throws. Power forward Sam Perkins had 1,186 points, 616 rebounds, 109 steals and 77 blocks, making 19 of 54 3-point shots and 245 of 296 free throws. Center James Donaldson had 889 points, 973 rebounds and 136 rebounds, making 311 of 531 field goal shots and 267 of 329 free throws.

Small forward Detlef Schrempf would make a name for himself in the 1990’s as a key part of the Seattle SuperSonics and their deep playoff runs. In this season with the Mavericks he had 756 points and 161 assists, making 33 of 69 3-point shots and 193 of 260 free throws. Point guard Brad Davis had 577 points and 373 assists, making 32 of 106 3-point shots and 147 of 171 free throws. Power forward Roy Tarpley had 561 points, 533 rebounds and 79 blocks, making 94 of 139 free throws.

Tarpley would would make the NBA All-Rookie 1^st Team. Mark Aguirre and Rolando Blackman would be the 2 Mavericks players who would make the All-Star Game. Derek Harper would make the NBA All-Defensive 2^nd Team.

A pair of 6-game winning streaks would end up defining the solid regular season the Mavericks had. The first winning streak began with a 113-108 win over the Los Angeles Clippers, by far one of the worst teams of the NBA at the time, on November 20, and the streak would end with a 127-124 win over the Sacramento Kings on December 2. The second winning streak began with a 118-109 win over the Houston Rockets on March 14, and the streak ended with a 119-107 win over the New Jersey Nets on March 24.

One game the Mavericks could look back on would be their impressive blowout victory over the Seattle SuperSonics on February 4 at the Reunion Arena. The Mavericks beat the Sonics 124-94. Mark Aguirre had 23 points and 4 rebounds, making 10 of 19 field goal shots. Rolando Blackman had 18 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. James Donaldson had 14 rebounds and 3 assists to go along with his 6 points.

Proving themselves to be a legitimate contender throughout the regular season, the Dallas Mavericks were looking to build on their momentum in the playoffs as they faced the Seattle SuperSonics in the 1^st Round of the Western Conference playoffs. However, the Mavericks were unable to pass their first test as they lost to the Sonics 3 games to 1.

Things did appear to be looking up for the Mavericks as they did win Game 1 on April 23 on their home court of the Reunion Arena. This high scoring game featured a lot of back and forth plays as the Mavericks outlasted the Sonics, beating them 151-129. For Seattle power forward Tom Chambers had 35 points, 9 rebounds and 3 blocks. Shooting guard and small forward Dale Ellis had 22 points, 3 rebounds and 6 assists. Small forward and power forward Xavier McDaniel had 18 points, 13 rebounds and 7 assists.

Leading the way for Dallas would be Mark Aguirre as he had 28 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals. Roy Tarpley continued to shine in his rookie year as he had 25 points, 11 rebounds and 3 blocks, making 10 of 15 field goal shots. Rolando Blackman had 18 points and 7 assists, making 8 of 15 field goal shots. Derek Harper had 18 points, 6 rebounds and 4 steals, making 7 of 10 field goal shots.

The following season would see a significant improvement in the Dallas Mavericks as they would advance all the way to the Western Conference Finals. However, after the 1989-1990 NBA season the Mavericks would fall into a pit of losing where they wouldn’t get out of for the entire 1990’s decade. It wouldn’t be until the team had new ownership when the Mavericks would start playing better basketball again.