Dallas Mavericks Logos
Maybe known more now for their billionaire-owner and “Shark Tank” celebrity, Mark Cuban, than their on-the-court heroics, the Dallas Mavericks play basketball in the Western Conference’s Southwest Division. Added to the league as an expansion team in 1980, the Dallas Mavericks have accomplished much in their relatively short tenure as a league franchise.
They could have gone by a different name, though, as Dallas-Fort Worth radio station WBAP-AM asked for franchise name suggestions from their listeners. We could be talking about the “Armadillos,” “Snail Darters,” or even the “Wranglers.” The final name, “Mavericks,” caused some consternation with the University of Texas-Arlington, as their basketball team was known as the “Movin’ Mavs.” In fact, “Mavs” was banned from use during team co-founder Norm Sonju’s tenure.
As the team surpasses its 40th season in the NBA, let’s look back on the logos used to galvanize the Mavericks’ fanbase and send out a rally cry to fans across the nation, and even, the world.
Rodeo Ball
It would be fair to describe the Mavericks’ initial performances as vacillating between famine and feast. Their first three seasons saw the team ship out losing records, but they ultimately advanced to the playoffs in six out of the first 10 seasons.
After delivering losing records for the next 10 seasons (1990-91 through 1999-2000), new ownership would spur the team toward playoff appearances in 15 of the next 16 seasons. This also included two trips to the NBA Finals and one victory, during the 2010-11 season.
It also helps that over this time period the Mavericks have been able to rely on power forward and center Dirk Nowitzki. The 13-time All-Star and 2006-07 league MVP was also the NBA Finals MVP in 2011.
Branded Steer
In 40 years, the Dallas Mavericks have only changed their logo four times. Here are the different logo designs they’ve used as the face of their franchise.
1980–1993: The team’s first logo, which underwent 77 revisions before it was approved by the Mavericks ownership, has a green and blue color scheme said to convey “North Texas countryside” feelings. There is a green basketball behind a large “M” wearing a cowboy hat. The city and team name are in blue font with a green outline.
1994–2001: The team loved its first logo so much, they only make minor alterations in the next iteration. Utilizing a new font, they remove the green border around the city and team name.
2002–2017: After purchasing the majority ownership in the Mavericks for about $280 million, Cuban helps to rebrand the team. They change colors – goodbye, green! – to silver, black, and blue. There is a horse in the center circle, where a blue basketball is located. Both the city and team name are still featured in the logo.
2018 – Present: The colors of the Mavericks logo were freshened up in 2017-2018. The changes are slight, but team color is essential for the brand. The stallion’s mane and shield were updated to a darker shade of silver. Another color adjustment made was to the basketball and the background of the nameplate to a lighter blue. As the Dallas Mavericks move forward in the 2022 Playoffs to the Conference Finals, the logo recognition and purpose continue to dominate.
Unbridled Passion
The Dallas Mavericks continue to give their home crowd plenty to cheer about during the NBA season and playoffs. With engaged ownership, an exciting roster, and a memorable gameday experience, who wouldn’t want to be a Mavericks fan? Gear up with the best officially licensed NBA and Dallas Mavericks merchandise and apparel at Fanatics.com.
Sources
- http://www.sportslogos.net/logos/list_by_team/228/Dallas_Mavericks/
- https://books.google.com/books?id=tiBrCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA19&lpg=PA19&dq=mavericks,+wrangler,+express&source=bl&ots=tkTgRJWzIK&sig=6sjIc9NIE5VQDLnvkST8x_bSwVA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi7pezIx9jRAhXI1CYKHbCnBpMQ6AEIODAF#v=onepage&q=mavericks%2C%20wrangler%2C%20express&f=false
- http://www.espn.com/dallas/columns/story?id=4793301&columnist=macmahon_tim
