Top 10 Plays and Moments from Dallas Mavericks' 2014-15 Season

The Dallas Mavericks flamed out of the NBA playoffs, but the season still contained some memorable moments and plays.

Dallas' fluent motion offense dominated the league early in the year, providing highlights aplenty. For a while, the Mavs stole the "Lob City" title from the Los Angeles Clippers, as Brandan Wright and Tyson Chandler feasted on alley-oop dunks.

Monta Ellis and Dirk Nowitzki have always been clutch, and they each had several impressive late-game moments throughout the regular season and the playoffs.

Cutting through a slew of highlight plays is tough, but here are 10 that were particularly noteworthy.

Wright, Parsons Combine for a Nice Poster Dunk

Wright might not have lasted long before being traded this season, but he sure had his fair share of highlight plays. He has always been a high-flyer, and the Mavericks' offensive system allowed him to feast on open lanes and throw down dunks on a consistent basis.

The play above from makes the top 10 not only because of Wright's poster dunk over the Philadelphia 76ers' Nerlens Noel, but also due to the excellent set up by Chandler Parsons.

Parsons pump-fakes his defender into the air, draws in the help defender and drops the ball off to the big man with a flashy behind-the-head dish to punctuate the 123-70 blowout on Nov. 29.

Aminu Denies James Harden at the Rim

Al-Farouq Aminu had his share of highlight-worthy defensive plays this season, ranging from steals which led to explosive fast breaks to demoralizing weak-side blocks. It would be easy to make a compilation of him making sheer hustle plays, but this one from an April 2 loss against the Houston Rockets' James Harden stands out.

The block displayed both Aminu's extraordinary athleticism and his improved basketball IQ. He recognized that no one stopped Harden before he could gather speed and got into helping position. The MVP candidate Eurostepped past his defender but met resistance at the rim.

Aminu screaming "give me that" as he slammed Harden's shot against the backboard just enhanced the whole play.

Chandler's Revenge on New York Knicks

Tyson Chandler's stint with the New York Knicks didn't end on the best terms, as he battled through injuries in his final year with the team and was eventually traded to the Mavs prior to this season.

It's not uncommon for players to look through the schedule and circle in games against a former team. It appeared as though Chandler did just that ahead of Dallas' 109-102 overtime victory over New York on Nov. 26.

Chandler had one of his best games of the year, scoring an efficient 17 points and grabbing 25 rebounds. He was hustling all over the offensive glass, pulling down 10 offensive boards. 

Chandler's frontcourt buddy Nowitzki also chipped in for 30 points, as the two starters combined for a total of 47 points and 31 rebounds.

Ellis Finishes a 360 Reverse Layup

At this point, Ellis is known for his theatrics. He has always been clutch and capable of making special plays at any point of a game, but this extraordinary finish against the Brooklyn Nets on Feb. 28 was just nuts.

Ellis beat his man with a backdoor cut and caught a perfect bounce pass from Rajon Rondo. At that point, most guards would have either tried to finish through the contact of the helping defender, or look for an open shooter at the perimeter. But not Monta.

Instead, Ellis spun 360 degrees while his momentum carried him past the defender before finishing with a smooth reverse layup. A great setup and a terrific finish.

Rondo with the No-Look Dish

The Rondo experiment was overall a terrible failure, but that doesn't mean he didn't have his moments as a Maverick.

Rondo has always been capable of making flashy dishes to his teammates and finishing at the rim in creative fashion. He made several nifty bounce passes throughout the season, but opted for the no-look over-the-head route in this highlight from March 18.

He rotates off his guy, calmly collects the loose ball and effortlessly hits Ellis with a spectacular pass to draw cheers from the Dallas crowd en route to a 108-102 victory.

Jefferson with a Very Offensive Foul

Richard Jefferson turned back the clock with rim-rattling dunks a couple of times this season, but no play was more impressive than his destruction of the Charlotte Hornets' Michael Kidd-Gilchrist during a Feb. 22 win.

It was called as an offensive foul, but the damage was done regardless. The fans and the Mavericks celebrated the play like it was a game-winner, even though it didn't result in two points. Kidd-Gilchrist came out on top, but Jefferson claimed the moral victory.

Jefferson did push off a little with his left arm, but the referees could easily have let it go. Either way, it was an electric moment that got everyone watching out of their seats.

Felton Wins the Game Against Denver Nuggets

Raymond Felton didn't see much playing time this season, as he found himself mostly injured and at the very end of Dallas' deep backcourt rotation.

But toward the end of the year, with the Mavericks locked into the seventh seed and mainly looking to rest players, Felton had an opportunity to start some games. He instantly managed to make an impact, nailing a game-winner against the Denver Nuggets on April 10.

With Dallas down by a single point, Felton used a nice crossover dribble to get past his defender and finished with a layup high off the glass to steal the game 144-143 on Denver's court.

Nowitzki Passes Moses Malone for 7th on All-Time Scorers List

This season featured a ton of personal milestones for Nowitzki, as he stayed healthy and climbed up the all-time scoring list.

He left Hakeem Olajuwon, Elvin Hayes and Moses Malone in the rear-view mirror on his way to claiming the seventh spot on the scoring list with 28,119 career points.

Dirk reached the milestone in a 96-88 overtime victory on Jan. 5 against the Brooklyn Nets, nailing a clutch three-pointer to close out the game. He then proceeded to celebrate the great achievement with his teammates.

He is now just 477 points away from catching Shaquille O'Neal and will continue his climb next year.

Dallas Rallies Behind Dirk Nowitzki to Beat Portland Trail Blazers in OT

The Mavericks' 111-101 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Feb. 7 was one of the sweetest of the season.

Dallas went into the fourth quarter with a 13-point deficit, staring at yet another potential loss to a top team in the Western Conference. But Nowitzki wouldn't allow it.

The Mavs collectively chewed into the deficit behind huge corner threes by Parsons and Harris, and Dallas found itself three points down with 23 seconds remaining.

That's when Ellis and Dirk ran a little pick-and-roll at the top of the key, with Nowitzki slipping behind the three-point line. Two Portland defenders had realized their critical error and rushed toward him, as he calmly released a high-arcing jumper to tie the game.

Parsons would proceed to drop 10 points in the overtime period to help Dallas complete an epic comeback.

Ellis Hits Game-Winner Against Milwaukee Bucks

Monta's buzzer-beater against the Milwaukee Bucks on Dec. 4 gets the top spot. Perhaps the shot didn't carry crucial postseason implications against an elite opponent, but it had just about everything else.

There is the emotional factor from Ellis' perspective, who left the Bucks in free agency when the team showed no particular interest in paying him. It's been a while since then, but it had to feel great for Ellis to beat his former team in heartbreaking fashion.

The degree of difficulty on the final shot also gives the play a boost in the rankings. Ellis held onto the ball for a long time and dribbled into three defenders with one second remaining. To be able to spin out of that kind of a trap and get a shot off is hard enough. To also hit it is just ridiculous.