1997–98 Dallas Mavericks season

The 1997–98 NBA season was the Mavericks' 18th season in the National Basketball Association. In the offseason, the Mavericks acquired three-point specialist Dennis Scott from the Orlando Magic while signing free agent Hubert Davis. After winning their first three games of the season, the Mavericks struggled once again and went on a ten-game losing streak in November. Head coach Jim Cleamons was fired and replaced with General Manager Don Nelson after 16 games. Along the way, forward A.C. Green broke the NBA's Iron Man record of most consecutive games played, breaking Randy Smith's record which was 906 consecutive games. However, the Mavericks suffered a 15-game losing streak during the first half of the season, and held an awful 9–38 record before the All-Star break.

At midseason, the team traded Scott to the Phoenix Suns for Cedric Ceballos, who played in just twelve games due to injury. The Mavericks played .500 basketball posting an 8–8 record in March, finishing fifth in the Midwest Division with a 20–62 record. Michael Finley led them in scoring averaging 21.5 points per game.