DALLAS — The Dallas Mavericks are targeting Nov. 18 for a tribute to former coach and general manager Don Nelson, Brad Townsend of The Dallas Morning News reported Thursday.
For now, Nov. 18 is the tentative date. The Mavericks have yet to announce the tribute or spell out publicly what they have planned.
Nov. 18 brings the Golden State Warriors to American Airlines Center. Tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m. CT on ESPN. It is the first of two Golden State visits to Dallas this season, with the second scheduled for March 2.
Golden State unveiled its own season-long tribute Aug. 26. The Warriors will have “NELLIE” on a band above the IREN jersey patch on the upper left side of their uniforms for all 82 games. Nelson was known as Nellie throughout a five-decade NBA career.
Nelson died Aug. 9 at age 86. In announcing his death, Golden State looked back on both of his coaching runs with the franchise, from the Run TMC era of the early 1990s to the We Believe team in 2007.
“He saw the game differently and was never afraid to challenge conventional thinking,” the Warriors said.
Patrick Dumont, the Mavericks’ governor, also issued a statement Aug. 9. Dumont credited Nelson with helping rebuild the franchise, taking a different approach to the game and establishing a winning culture in Dallas.
“His influence can be seen throughout Mavericks history and across the NBA today,” Dumont said.
Don Nelson’s Eight Seasons In Dallas
Dallas hired Nelson as head coach and general manager in 1997. In his first full offseason in charge, he worked draft-day trades with Milwaukee and Phoenix in 1998 that brought Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash to the Mavericks, and he paired them with Michael Finley.
Dallas won at least 50 games in four consecutive seasons. In 2002-03, the Mavericks finished 60-22 and made the Western Conference finals before losing to San Antonio in six games. Dallas also led the league in scoring that season at 103.0 points per game.
Nelson left the bench on March 19, 2005, turning the head-coaching job over to Avery Johnson. He finished out the season as general manager. Donnie Nelson, his son, then took over that role. Nelson went 339-251 as Dallas’ coach over eight seasons.
His interest in the Mavericks did not end when his tenure did. Nelson received the Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Basketball Coaches Association in 2025 wearing Luka Dončić‘s Jordan Brand signature shoes. He said he wore them to protest the trade that sent Dončić to Los Angeles.
“I think it was a tremendous mistake by the Dallas franchise to trade him,” Nelson said.
Golden State Warriors Uniform Tributes
Golden State had Nelson on its bench from 1988 through 1995, then brought him back for another run from 2006 through 2010. He coached 11 seasons for the Warriors in all and went 422-443.
The 1990-91 Warriors finished 44-38 and averaged 116.6 points per game, second in the NBA. Chris Mullin, Mitch Richmond and Tim Hardaway were the core of that team, which entered the playoffs as the No. 7 seed and beat San Antonio in the opening round. In 1989, Nelson used Rod Higgins, normally a forward, at center during another first-round win, this one over Utah.
As the No. 8 seed in 2007, Golden State eliminated a 67-15 Dallas team in six games. Two years later, Nelson was among those pushing the Warriors to take Stephen Curry with the seventh pick.
The Nellie band is not the first uniform tribute Golden State has used for one of its franchise figures. Al Attles was honored with a No. 16 patch in 2024-25. The Warriors wore No. 42 for Nate Thurmond in 2016, and in 2010-11 they used an image of former owner Franklin Mieuli‘s deerstalker cap.
Celebration Of Life Held Aug. 13
Nelson’s celebration of life took place Aug. 13 at Preston Hollow Presbyterian Church in Dallas. Leon Bridges and Pat Green performed, while Owen Wilson appeared by video.
Among those Townsend reported in attendance were Gregg Popovich, Rick Carlisle, Del Harris, Masai Ujiri, Rick Welts, Nash, Finley, Johnson, Mullin, Richmond, Hardaway, Nick Van Exel, Eduardo Nájera, Rolando Blackman, Brad Davis, Spud Webb, Josh Howard and Paul Pressey.
Popovich, now 77, was one of the speakers.
“His heart is bigger than the moon and softer than marshmallows,” Popovich said.
Nelson’s 31 seasons as an NBA head coach produced a 1,335-1,063 regular-season record. That total stood as the league record until Popovich moved past him in March 2022; Nelson now ranks second. His three Coach of the Year awards came in 1983 and 1985 with Milwaukee and in 1992 with Golden State. Nelson was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012.
As a player, Nelson won five championships with the Boston Celtics. The franchise retired his No. 19 in 1978.
Dallas opens the regular season Oct. 21 at Houston. The home opener is Oct. 24 against San Antonio.
