Everyone has a different story about their Dallas Mavericks fandom. Some are fans by proximity, others are fans because their parents took them to games as children, and yet others are fans because they follow certain players. For Taylor Sbordone and Peter Grieco, their fan story is a love story.
Taylor grew up in New York, a fan of the Knicks. When she relocated to Dallas a couple of years ago, with no friends or family in the area, she started following the Mavericks as a way to get involved in something in her new hometown. She was especially impressed with Dirk Nowitzki’s humility, regardless of his increasing fame.
“She had no family here,” Grieco said. “The Mavs gave her a place to belong.”
To Taylor, the Mavericks are more than her favorite team, they are her family.
“Being a fan of this organization brought so much more to living in Texas,” she said. “The players go out of their way to make us feel special.”
Peter added, “It’s not just a basketball thing – it’s a Mavs thing.”
For their first anniversary, Peter surprised Taylor with Mavericks season tickets because, of course, the first anniversary is celebrated with the gift of paper.
“I never knew what to get her before,” Grieco said. “Now I know to get her something Mavs, and I’m in the clear.”
They are now enjoying their second season as Mavericks season ticket holders.
The second anniversary is traditionally celebrated with the gift of cotton, so Peter set out to get Taylor a custom home jersey. Acquiring the gift was no small task, and Peter got an assist from Mavericks proprietor Mark Cuban to make it happen. Peter wanted to get Taylor’s twitter handle (TravelingMFFL) on the back of the jersey, but was having difficulty fitting all of the characters in the limited space available. He took a chance and emailed Cuban to tell him about the special anniversary surprise, and before he knew it, the Mavs Fan Shop was on the case. Peter still gets a huge grin on his face when he tells the story.
“Other organizations, you can’t reach out to the proprietor,” he said.
Taylor and Peter plan to renew their season tickets every year, adding more chapters to their Mavs love story.
Are you looking for a special gift for the Mavs fan in your life? Follow in Taylor and Peter’s footsteps, and head over to Mavs.com to give the gift of Mavericks tickets!
What’s your Mavs story? Send me a tweet at @JamieSportsTalk, and your story could be featured in Fan Focus!
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