1987–88 Dallas Mavericks season explained

The 1987–88 Dallas Mavericks season was the eighth season of the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA).The Mavericks finished second in the Midwest Division with a 53–29 record. They defeated the Houston Rockets four games in the first round of the 1988 NBA Playoffs, then defeated the 2nd-seeded Denver Nuggets six games in the semifinals. The Mavs made their first appearance in the Western Conference finals, where they pushed the eventual-champion Los Angeles Lakers to seven games. The Mavs were coached by John MacLeod and played their home games at Reunion Arena.^[1]

Mark Aguirre and James Donaldson were both selected to play in the 1988 NBA All-Star Game in Chicago. This was Donaldson's only All-Star Game appearance in his career.

NBA draft

See main article: article and 1987 NBA draft.

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
1	20	Jim Farmer	Guard		Alabama
2	26	Steve Alford	Guard		Indiana
3	66	Mike Richmond	Forward		UTEP
4	89	David Johnson	Forward		Oklahoma
5	112	Sam Hill	Center		Iowa State
6	135	Quintan Gates	Forward		UTEP
7	158	Gerald White	Guard		Auburn

^[2]

Regular season

Record vs. opponents

1987-88 NBA Records
width=100	Team	ATL	BOS	CHI	CLE	DAL	DEN	DET	GSW	HOU	IND	LAC	LAL	MIL	NJN	NYK	PHI	PHO	POR	SAC	SAS	SEA	UTA	WAS
Atlanta	—	2–4	2–3	5–1	2–0	1–1	2–4	2–0	1–1	4–2	2–0	0–2	3–3	5–0	3–3	6–0	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	3–3
Boston	4–2	—	3–3	2–3	2–0	0–2	3–3	2–0	1–1	5–0	2–0	0–2	3–3	5–1	5–1	4–2	2–0	2–0	2–0	2–0	1–1	2–0	5–1
Chicago	3–2	3–3	—	3–3	0–2	1–1	2–4	2–0	2–0	3–3	2–0	1–1	5–1	5–1	3–2	4–2	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	3–3
Cleveland	1–5	3–2	3–3	—	1–1	1–1	1–5	0–2	1–1	4–2	1–1	1–1	2–4	5–1	2–4	3–2	1–1	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	0–2	6–0
Dallas	0–2	0–2	2–0	1–1	—	3–3	1–1	4–1	4–2	2–0	5–0	1–4	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	5–0	3–2	5–1	5–1	3–2	3–3	1–1
Denver	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	3–3	—	1–1	4–1	4–2	1–1	5–0	3–2	1–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	3–2	2–3	4–2	5–1	4–1	2–4	2–0
Detroit	4–2	3–3	4–2	5–1	1–1	1–1	—	2–0	1–1	3–3	1–1	0–2	4–2	5–1	4–2	4–1	2–0	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–0	3–2
Golden State	0–2	0–2	0–2	2–0	1–4	1–4	0–2	—	0–5	0–2	3–3	0–6	0–2	2–0	0–2	1–1	2–4	1–5	2–3	3–2	1–5	1–4	0–2
Houston	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	2–4	2–4	1–1	5–0	—	2–0	3–2	1–4	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–1	4–1	4–2	2–4	3–2	3–3	2–0
Indiana	2–4	0–5	3–3	2–4	0–2	1–1	3–3	2–0	0–2	—	1–1	1–1	3–3	6–0	2–3	2–4	2–0	0–2	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	2–4
L.A. Clippers	0–2	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–5	0–5	1–1	3–3	2–3	1–1	—	1–5	0–2	0–2	0–2	1–1	2–4	0–6	3–2	0–5	1–5	1–4	0–2
L.A. Lakers	2–0	2–0	1–1	1–1	4–1	2–3	2–0	6–0	4–1	1–1	5–1	—	0–2	2–0	2–0	2–0	5–1	3–3	4–1	5–0	4–2	4–1	1–1
Milwaukee	3–3	3–3	1–5	4–2	0–2	1–1	2–4	2–0	0–2	3–3	2–0	2–0	—	3–2	3–3	2–4	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	1–1	4–1
New Jersey	0–5	1–5	1–5	1–5	1–1	0–2	1–5	0–2	1–1	0–6	2–0	0–2	2–3	—	3–3	2–4	1–1	0–2	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–6
New York	3–3	1–5	2–3	4–2	1–1	1–1	2–4	2–0	1–1	3–2	2–0	0–2	3–3	3–3	—	3–3	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	1–1	3–3
Philadelphia	0–6	2–4	2–4	2–3	1–1	0–2	1–4	1–1	1–1	4–2	1–1	0–2	4–2	4–2	3–3	—	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–0	3–3
Phoenix	1–1	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–5	2–3	0–2	4–2	1–4	0–2	4–2	1–5	1–1	1–1	2–0	1–1	—	0–6	3–2	2–3	2–4	2–3	0–2
Portland	2–0	0–2	1–1	1–1	2–3	3–2	1–1	5–1	1–4	2–0	6–0	3–3	1–1	2–0	1–1	1–1	6–0	—	4–1	5–0	3–3	1–4	2–0
Sacramento	1–1	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–5	2–4	0–2	3–2	2–4	0–2	2–3	1–4	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–3	1–4	—	3–3	1–4	1–5	0–2
San Antonio	0–2	0–2	1–1	0–2	1–5	1–5	1–1	2–3	4–2	0–2	5–0	0–5	1–1	1–1	1–1	1–1	3–2	0–5	3–3	—	3–2	3–3	0–2
Seattle	0–2	1–1	1–1	1–1	2–3	1–4	1–1	5–1	2–3	1–1	5–1	2–4	1–1	2–0	2–0	1–1	4–2	3–3	4–1	2–3	—	1–4	2–0
Utah	1–1	0–2	0–2	2–0	3–3	4–2	0–2	4–1	3–3	1–1	4–1	1–4	1–1	1–1	1–1	0–2	3–2	4–1	5–1	3–3	4–1	—	2–0
Washington	3–3	1–5	3–3	0–6	1–1	0–2	2–3	2–0	0–2	4–2	2–0	1–1	1–4	6–0	3–3	3–3	2–0	0–2	2–0	2–0	0–2	0–2	—

Game log

|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 1| November 6, 1988
7:30p.m. CST| Utah| W 95–93| Aguirre (31)| Donaldson (13)| Alford
Blackman (5)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 1–0|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 2| November 7, 1987| @ San Antonio| L 106–130|||| HemisFair Arena| 1–1|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 3| November 10, 1987
9:30p.m. CST| @ Seattle| W 117–101| Aguirre (25)| Aguirre (8)| Harper (16)| Seattle Center Coliseum
10,447| 2–1|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 4| November 11, 1987
8:30p.m. CST| @ Utah| L 92–121| Aguirre (21)| Tarpley (14)| Schrempf (4)| Salt Palace
12,212| 2–2|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 5| November 13, 1987
7:00p.m. CST| Seattle| L 95–103| Blackman,
Perkins (19)| Donaldson (9)| Harper (7)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 2–3|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 6| November 14, 1987| Portland| W 127–116|||| Reunion Arena| 3–3|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 7| November 18, 1987| L.A. Clippers| W 97–87|||| Reunion Arena| 4–3|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 8| November 20, 1987
9:30p.m. CST| @ L.A. Lakers| L 116–119| Aguirre (35)| Blackman (7)| Davis (8)| The Forum
17,505| 4–4|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 9| November 21, 1987| @ Sacramento| W 103–96|||| ARCO Arena| 5–4|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 10| November 25, 1987
7:30p.m. CST| Detroit| W 113–107| Blackman (30)| Perkins (12)| Harper (10)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 6–4|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 11| November 27, 1987
7:00p.m. CST| Chicago| W 94–93| Aguirre (26)| Tarpley (10)| Harper (11)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 7–4|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 12| November 28, 1987
8:30p.m. CST| @ Denver| L 98–106| Blackman (28)| Tarpley (18)| Harper (7)| McNichols Sports Arena
13,400| 7–5|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 13| December 4, 1987| Golden State| W 116–95|||| Reunion Arena| 8–5|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 14| December 5, 1987
7:30p.m. CST| Denver| W 109–96| Aguirre (35)| Aguirre (11)| Blackman (9)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 9–5|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 15| December 9, 1987| Sacramento| W 125–98|||| Reunion Arena| 10–5|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 16| December 11, 1987| Phoenix| W 108–104|||| Reunion Arena| 11–5|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 17| December 13, 1987
7:30p.m. CST| @ Milwaukee| W 113–99| Perkins (21)| Donaldson (9)| Harper (11)| MECCA Arena
11,052| 12–5|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 18| December 15, 1987
6:30p.m. CST| @ Cleveland| L 93–106| Harper (21)| Donaldson (12)| Aguirre,
Blackman,
Harper (4)| Richfield Coliseum
6,852| 12–6|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 19| December 16, 1987| @ New Jersey| W 109–105 (OT)|||| Brendan Byrne Arena| 13–6|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 20| December 18, 1987
6:30p.m. CST| @ Detroit| L 112–117| Aguirre (35)| Donaldson (12)| Harper (7)| Pontiac Silverdome
19,426| 13–7|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 21| December 19, 1987| @ Philadelphia| L 90–95|||| The Spectrum| 13–8|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 22| December 22, 1987
7:00p.m. CST| @ Chicago| W 111–100| Aguirre (32)| Donaldson (18)| Blackman,
Harper (9)| Chicago Stadium
18,103| 14–8|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 23| December 23, 1987| @ Indiana| W 110–109|||| Market Square Arena| 15–8|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 24| December 26, 1987| Houston| W 105–100|||| Reunion Arena| 16–8|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 25| December 29, 1987| Sacramento| W 126–117|||| Reunion Arena| 17–8|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 26| January 2, 1988| @ San Antonio| W 116–109|||| HemisFair Arena| 18–8|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 27| January 4, 1988| @ Houston| L 107–117|||| The Summit| 18–9|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 28| January 6, 1988
9:30p.m. CST| @ L.A. Lakers| L 89–103| Aguirre (29)| Donaldson (12)| Harper (11)| The Forum
17,505| 18–10|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 29| January 7, 1988| @ Phoenix| W 105–91|||| Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum| 19–10|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 30| January 9, 1988| @ Golden State| W 115–99|||| Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena| 20–10|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 31| January 13, 1988| Indiana| W 110–108|||| Reunion Arena| 21–10|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 32| January 16, 1988
12:30p.m. CST| Atlanta| L 98–101| Aguirre (32)| Tarpley (8)| Harper (11)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 21–11|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 33| January 18, 1988
9:30p.m. CST| @ L.A. Clippers| W 99–87|||| Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena| 22–11|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 34| January 19, 1988| @ Portland| W 120–116|||| Memorial Coliseum| 23–11|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 35| January 22, 1988| L.A. Clippers| W 110–87|||| Reunion Arena| 24–11|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 36| January 23, 1988
7:30p.m. CST| Milwaukee| W 113–97| Aguirre (35)| Donaldson,
Tarpley (14)| Harper (12)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 25–11|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 37| January 26, 1988| San Antonio| W 128–111|||| Reunion Arena| 26–11|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 38| January 27, 1988| @ Phoenix| W 121–102|||| Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum| 27–11|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 39| January 29, 1988
7:30p.m. CST| Seattle| W 117–109| Aguirre (29)| Donaldson (10)| Harper (5)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 28–11|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 40| January 30, 1988| Houston| L 92–108|||| Reunion Arena| 28–12|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 41| February 1, 1988| New Jersey| L 103–108|||| Reunion Arena| 28–13|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 42| February 3, 1988
8:30p.m. CST| @ Denver| L 105–115| Aguirre (27)| Donaldson (15)| Harper (7)| McNichols Sports Arena
10,667| 28–14|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 43| February 4, 1988| @ Sacramento| L 101–118|||| ARCO Arena| 28–15|- align="center"|colspan="9" bgcolor="#bbcaff"|All-Star Break|- style="background:#cfc;"|- bgcolor="#bbffbb"|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 44| February 9, 1988
7:00p.m. CST| Utah| W 124–93| Harper (21)| Tarpley (13)| Aguirre (8)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 29–15|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 45| February 10, 1988
8:30p.m. CST| @ Utah| L 80–93| Blackman (18)| Tarpley (17)| Harper (6)| Salt Palace
12,444| 29–16|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 46| February 12, 1988
7:30p.m. CST| Boston| L 104–105| Aguirre (38)| Tarpley (14)| Harper (10)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 29–17|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 47| February 14, 1988| @ L.A. Clippers| W 110–100|||| Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena| 30–17|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 48| February 15, 1988
8:00p.m. CST| @ Seattle| W 128–122 (2OT)| Blackman (28)| Donaldson (13)| Blackman (7)| Seattle Center Coliseum
13,492| 31–17|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 49| February 17, 1988
7:30p.m. CST| Washington| W 123–108| Aguirre (35)| Tarpley (19)| Harper (11)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 32–17|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 50| February 19, 1988
7:30p.m. CST| Golden State| W 113–100|||| Reunion Arena| 33–17|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 51| February 22, 1988
7:30p.m. CST| Phoenix| W 114–107|||| Reunion Arena| 34–17|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 52| February 24, 1988
7:30p.m. CST| Cleveland| W 93–89| Blackman (26)| Tarpley (9)| Davis,
Harper (5)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 35–17|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 53| February 25, 1988| @ Houston| W 108–106|||| The Summit| 36–17|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 54| February 27, 1988| Philadelphia| W 100–91|||| Reunion Arena| 37–17|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 55| February 29, 1988
7:30p.m. CST| Denver| W 123–96| Aguirre,
Perkins (22)| Tarpley (21)| Aguirre (9)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 38–17|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 56| March 2, 1988| Sacramento| W 115–90|||| Reunion Arena| 39–17|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 57| March 4, 1988
7:00p.m. CST| Houston| W 118–110|||| Reunion Arena| 40–17|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 58| March 6, 1988
1:00p.m. CST| L.A. Lakers| L 97–108| Aguirre (27)| Donaldson (12)| Davis,
Harper (6)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 40–18|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 59| March 8, 1988| Portland| L 110–112|||| Reunion Arena| 41–19|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 60| March 12, 1988
10:00p.m. CST| @ L.A. Lakers| W 110–101| Aguirre (21)| Tarpley (21)| Aguirre,
Davis (5)| The Forum
17,505| 41–19|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 61| March 14, 1988| Golden State| W 121–101|||| Reunion Arena| 42–19|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 62| March 16, 1988
8:30p.m. CST| @ Utah| L 105–120| Aguirre (29)| Perkins (10)| Harper (7)| Salt Palace
12,444| 42–20|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 63| March 18, 1988| @ L.A. Clippers| W 106–98|||| Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena| 43–20|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 64| March 20, 1988| @ Portland| L 99–105|||| Memorial Coliseum| 43–21|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 65| March 22, 1988
7:30p.m. CST| New York| W 124–105|||| Reunion Arena| 44–21|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 66| March 25, 1988| Portland| W 106–101|||| Reunion Arena| 45–21|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 67| March 26, 1988| San Antonio| W 131–112|||| Reunion Arena| 46–21|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 68| March 28, 1988
6:30p.m. CST| @ New York| L 106–114|||| Madison Square Garden| 46–22|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 69| March 29, 1988
7:00p.m. CST| @ Atlanta| L 106–120| Harper (25)| Tarpley (19)| Harper (9)| The Omni
14,583| 46–23|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 70| April 1, 1988
7:00p.m. CST| @ Washington| L 113–128| Aguirre (38)| Donaldson (11)| Aguirre (6)| Capital Centre
13,783| 46–24|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 71| April 3, 1988
12Noon CDT| @ Boston| L 101–110| Tarpley (22)| Tarpley (16)| Blackman (6)| Boston Garden
14,890| 46–25|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 72| April 6, 1988| Phoenix| W 119–93|||| Reunion Arena| 47–25|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 73| April 8, 1988
7:30p.m. CDT| Utah| W 118–95| Blackman (21)| Tarpley (15)| Harper (6)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 48–25|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 74| April 9, 1988
7:30p.m. CDT| Denver| W 135–109| Harper (35)| Donaldson (13)| Harper (11)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 49–25|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 75| April 12, 1988| @ Sacramento| W 104–96|||| ARCO Arena| 50–25|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 76| April 13, 1988| @ Golden State| L 110–112|||| Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena| 50–26|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 77| April 15, 1988
9:30p.m. CDT| @ Seattle| L 88–115| Aguirre (24)| Donaldson (13)| Harper (5)| Seattle Center Coliseum
12,576| 50–27|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 78| April 17, 1988
3:00p.m. CDT| @ Denver| L 122–133| Blackman (31)| Donaldson
Tarpley (11)| Davis (6)| McNichols Sports Arena
17,022| 50–28|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 79| April 19, 1988
7:30p.m. CDT| @ Houston| W 104–96|||| The Summit| 51–28|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 80| April 20, 1988
7:30p.m. CDT| L.A. Lakers| L 107–114| Tarpley (24)| Tarpley (13)| Blackman (7)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 51–29|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 81| April 22, 1988| San Antonio| W 127–96|||| Reunion Arena| 52–29|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 82| April 24, 1988| @ San Antonio| W 119–109|||| HemisFair Arena| 53–29

Playoffs

Game log

|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 1| April 28, 1988
7:30p.m. CDT| Houston| W 120–110| Roy Tarpley (24)| Roy Tarpley (9)| Derek Harper (8)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 1–0|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 2| April 30, 1988
2:30p.m. CDT| Houston| L 108–119| Roy Tarpley (23)| Roy Tarpley (13)| Derek Harper (8)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 1–1|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 3| May 3, 1988
7:30p.m. CDT| @ Houston| W 93–92| Roy Tarpley (17)| Roy Tarpley (13)| Rolando Blackman (7)| The Summit
16,611| 2–1|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 4| May 5, 1988
7:00p.m. CDT| @ Houston| W 107–97| Mark Aguirre (38)| James Donaldson (10)| Rolando Blackman (10)| The Summit
16,611| 3–1|-|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 1| May 10, 1988
8:30p.m. CDT| @ Denver| L 115–126| Aguirre (26)| Donaldson (13)| Harper (5)| McNichols Sports Arena
17,022| 0–1|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 2| May 12, 1988
9:00p.m. CDT| @ Denver| W 112–108| Blackman (31)| Donaldson (13)| Harper (8)| McNichols Sports Arena
17,022| 1–1|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 3| May 14, 1988
2:30p.m. CDT| Denver| L 105–107| Perkins (17)| Tarpley (15)| Aguirre (6)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 1–2|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 4| May 15, 1988
7:00p.m. CDT| Denver| W 124–103| Aguirre (34)| Tarpley (13)| Harper (10)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 2–2|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 5| May 17, 1988
9:00p.m. CDT| @ Denver| W 110–106| Aguirre (25)| Tarpley (16)| Harper (6)| McNichols Sports Arena
17,022| 3–2|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 6| May 19, 1988
7:00p.m. CDT| Denver| W 108–95| Blackman,
Perkins (23)| Tarpley (19)| Harper (9)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 4–2|-|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 1| May 23, 1988
9:30p.m. CDT| @ L.A. Lakers| L 98–113| Aguirre,
Blackman,
Tarpley (18)| Tarpley (20)| Harper (7)| The Forum
17,505| 0–1|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 2| May 25, 1988
9:30p.m. CDT| @ L.A. Lakers| L 101–123| Aguirre (28)| Tarpley (13)| Harper (8)| The Forum
17,505| 0–2|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 3| May 27, 1988
7:00p.m. CDT| L.A. Lakers| W 106–94| Aguirre (23)| Tarpley (20)| Davis (6)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 1–2|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 4| May 29, 1988
2:30p.m. CDT| L.A. Lakers| W 118–104| Harper (35)| Tarpley (13)| Blackman (11)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 2–2|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 5| May 31, 1988
10:30p.m. CDT| @ L.A. Lakers| L 102–119| Aguirre (31)| Tarpley (11)| Harper (6)| The Forum
17,505| 2–3|- align="center" bgcolor="#ccffcc"| 6| June 2, 1988
8:00p.m. CDT| L.A. Lakers| W 105–103| Aguirre (23)| Aguirre (13)| Harper (10)| Reunion Arena
17,007| 3–3|- align="center" bgcolor="#ffcccc"| 7| June 4, 1988
2:30p.m. CDT| @ L.A. Lakers| L 102–117| Aguirre (24)| Donaldson (14)| Harper (11)| The Forum
17,505| 3–4|-

Awards and honors

Week/Month

• Roy Tarpley was named Player of the Week for games played February 22 through February 28.^[3]

All-Star

• Mark Aguirre was selected as a reserve for the Western Conference in the All-Star Game. It was his third All-Star selection. Aguirre finished seventh in voting among Western Conference forwards with 347,357 votes.^[4]
• James Donaldson was selected as a reserve for the Western Conference in the All-Star Game. It was his first and only All-Star selection. Donaldson finished fourth in voting among Western Conference centers with 310,100 votes.^[5]
• Detlef Schrempf was selected to compete in the Three-Point Shootout. Schrempf was eliminated in the second round.^[6]

Season

• Roy Tarpley received the Sixth Man of the Year Award.^[7]
• Mark Aguirre finished 14th in MVP voting.^[8]

Player statistics

Ragular season

Player
	PG	82	82	3,032	246	634	168	35	1,393	37.0	3.0	7.7	2.0	.4	17.0
	SF	82	4	1,587	279	159	42	32	698	19.4	3.4	1.9	.5	.4	8.5
	C	81	81	2,523	755	66	40	104	571	31.1	9.3	.8	.5	1.3	7.0
	PF	81	9	2,307	959	86	103	86	1,093	28.5	11.8	1.1	1.3	1.1	13.5
	SF	77	77	2,610	434	278	70	57	1,932	33.9	5.6	3.6	.9	.7	25.1
	PF	75	75	2,499	601	118	74	54	1,066	33.3	8.0	1.6	1.0	.7	14.2
	PG	75	12	1,480	102	303	51	18	537	19.7	1.4	4.0	.7	.2	7.2
	C	73	1	658	134	35	8	29	162	9.0	1.8	.5	.1	.4	2.2
	SG	71	69	2,580	246	262	64	18	1,325	36.3	3.5	3.7	.9	.3	18.7
	SG	30	0	157	18	16	3	1	61	5.2	.6	.5	.1	.0	2.0
	C	30	0	125	39	4	5	9	63	4.2	1.3	.1	.2	.3	2.1
	PG	28	0	197	23	23	17	3	59	7.0	.8	.8	.6	.1	2.1

Playoffs

Player
	SG	17	17	672	55	77	15	3	307	39.5	3.2	4.5	.9	.2	18.1
	PG	17	17	602	43	121	32	5	230	35.4	2.5	7.1	1.9	.3	13.5
	PF	17	17	572	112	31	25	17	230	33.6	6.6	1.8	1.5	1.0	13.5
	SF	17	17	558	100	56	14	9	367	32.8	5.9	3.3	.8	.5	21.6
	C	17	17	499	146	12	7	15	158	29.4	8.6	.7	.4	.9	9.3
	PF	17	0	563	219	30	21	26	304	33.1	12.9	1.8	1.2	1.5	17.9
	PG	17	0	295	20	55	3	5	109	17.4	1.2	3.2	.2	.3	6.4
	SF	15	0	274	55	24	8	7	117	18.3	3.7	1.6	.5	.5	7.8
	C	6	0	14	4	1	1	0	0	2.3	.7	.2	.2	.0	.0
	PG	4	0	12	2	2	0	0	6	3.0	.5	.5	.0	.0	1.5
	SG	3	0	11	4	1	0	0	4	3.7	1.3	.3	.0	.0	1.3
	C	3	0	8	1	1	0	0	2	2.7	.3	.3	.0	.0	.7

Transactions

Free agents

Subtractions

Date	Player	Reason Left	New Team
		Waived	Real Madrid (Spain)
		Waived	Basket Mestre (Italy)

^[9]

Notes and References

1. Web site: 1987-88 Dallas Mavericks Roster and Statistics . basketball-reference.com .
2. Web site: 1987 NBA DRAFT . thedraftreview.com .
3. Web site: Tarpley tabbed . The Times-News .
4. Web site: 1988 NBA All-Star Game Box Score . basketball-reference.com .
5. Web site: 1988 NBA All-Star Game Voting . basketball-reference.com .
6. Web site: NBA.com: Three-Point Contest All-Time Winners . nba.com/history . 2012-03-31 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120307231327/http://www.nba.com/history/allstar/shootout_alltime_winners.html . 2012-03-07 . dead .
7. Web site: Dallas's Tarpley receives Sixth Man Award . Herald-Journal .
8. Web site: 1987-88 NBA Awards Voting . basketball-reference.com .
9. Web site: 1987-88 Dallas Mavericks Transactions . basketball-reference.com .