Followill’s enthusiasm for the momentum swing was matched equally by the United States military heroes occupying 100-plus courtside seats as part of the Dallas Mavericks 18th annual Seats for Soldiers Night.
The Mavs went on to secure the 117-111 win over the Portland Trail Blazers, improving their record to 16-2 on the team’s Seats for Soldiers Night, established in 2004.
“We’re here with the vets, and we just got to put on a show,” Dereck Lively II told MavsTV’s Jeff “Skin” Wade during a walk-off interview after his 21-point, 15-rebound game. “We’re grateful for them coming out, we’re grateful for what they do for our country, and we just love it when they show us support.”
With the help of several partners, like American Airlines, Nick & Sam’s and Club Maverick Members, who generously donate their courtside seats year after year, the Dallas Mavericks and Mavs Foundation have been honoring our military heroes with the Seats for Soldiers theme night for two decades.
Despite challenges with winter weather that led this year’s planning committee to explore options A through Z, the team plowed through the obstacles to host a memorable evening for heroes from DFW’s Purple Heart Chapter 1513, Wounded Warrior Project, and Merging Players and Vets.
Guests were welcomed to the arena with a VIP pre-game reception, where the service men and women heard messages of gratitude from Lively, Luka Dončić, Daniel Gafford, and newly appointed Mavs CEO Rick Welts, before heading to their courtside seats for tipoff.
“One thing I think I’ve learned in my first week here at the Mavericks is just what this event means to everybody associated with the team, from ownership to every single person in the office, who were buzzing about this event,” said Welts. “There’s such a sense of pride that every year we get to do Seats for Soldiers and just get to take a moment to say thank you to the men and women who are serving us in ways that we can never truly thank them for.”
“They stand a little taller, their shoulders go back, there’s pride again— it instills a sense of ‘I’m home, and I’m still loved,’” said Gold Star spouse and associate member of Purple Heart Chapter 1513, Lisa Holmes Lunkwicz, of the service members at Thursday night’s game. “They don’t want recognition, they’re a little bit shy of it, but the Mavericks have made them feel so welcome and so at home that for them, it’s everything.
“I’m so proud that we can work with the Mavericks…In the past, we tried and tried, and here we are on the night my husband [Sergeant John Lunkwicz, PH] died four years ago today— it happened.”
Beyond sitting courtside and getting an opportunity to meet players before tipoff, incorporated into every part of the Mavs victory were military heroes, from the National Anthem to participating in on-court promotions— special shout out to Jason, who swept the Hot Hands Solo Stove bean bag toss challenge, winning all the service members a Mavs-branded Mesa Solo Stove!
And before heading home, the service members were also gifted bags with ultra-limited-edition commemorative photographs autographed by Luka Dončić, Mavs gear, and a voucher for a pair of the ultimate tactical boots courtesy of Woobies Shoes.
“I think tonight means a lot, just to be able to see basketball players in person and appreciate that in the hubbub busyness of the world we live in now, a major NBA organization like the Mavs will take their time and treat us like VIPs for a day, I just know it means a lot to these men and women,” said Sergeant Joe Washam, PH, a U.S. Army veteran and member of the Dallas Mavericks Advisory Council since 2022.
“I know in my personal experience, you have your high days and your low days, and sometimes you don’t want to go out and do stuff, but it’s awesome when an opportunity like this comes up, and it can be appreciated that people outside your immediate family support you, and want to see you do well and succeed. That’s what an event like this means.”
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