Dallas legend Dirk Nowitzki tops the Mavericks’ all-time block list.
With a legacy spanning five decades, the Dallas Mavericks have etched their name in NBA history with an NBA championship, three Western Conference titles, and a tradition of stout defensive play.
We’ll examine the five players who have blocked the most shots in Mavericks history, a list led by a legendary Hall of Famer:
Franchise legend Dirk Nowitzki earned accolades for his production in every category on the stat sheet. Although his scoring and rebounding prowess naturally garnered him the most notoriety, Nowitzki leveraged his 7-foot frame to record at least 1.0 block per game in six consecutive seasons beginning with the 2000-01 campaign. Although he’d only hit that mark in one other season over his two-decade-plus NBA tenure, his sheer longevity was enough to just vault him over former teammate Shawn Bradley for No. 1 on this leaderboard.
The 7-foot-6 Shawn Bradley unsurprisingly recorded nearly as many blocks as Nowitzki, despite spending significantly less time in Dallas. Bradley averaged 2.7 blocks per game in his first 33 games with the Mavericks after a trade from the Nets during the 1996-97 season, and he went on to contribute between 2.1 and 3.3 rejections per contest in five of his remaining eight full seasons in Dallas.
Donaldson was a towering figure at 7-foot-2 and utilized those dimensions well, averaging 1.3 blocks per game during what amounted to approximately six full seasons in Dallas. The big man averaged between 1.3 and 1.7 blocks per contest from his arrival during the 1985-86 season through the 1988-89 campaign, as well as 1.1 rejections during his final full Mavericks season (1990-91).
Erick Dampier, known for his rim-protecting abilities, was a defensive force with multiple NBA teams. Dampier made an immediate impact on the defensive end when he arrived in Dallas by tallying 1.4 blocks per contest during his 2004-05 campaign. Dampier went on to average between 1.1 and 1.5 blocks per contest in each of his five seasons with the Mavs, quickly vaulting him up the leaderboard.
After stints in Italy and the CBA, Kurt Nimphius joined the Mavericks and quickly became known for his defensive prowess. Nimphius averaged 1.3 blocks per game as a rookie, and he went on to record between 1.3 and 1.8 rejections per contest in each of his three full seasons with the team.
