Few days throughout the NBA calendar are as special as day one. There is no dread of a lost season or any regret of games that got away. There is only excitement and hope, which are amplified when you experience game one in person. I have been going to games my whole life, as my dad has had season tickets for the Dallas Mavericks since 1984. I am fortunate to have experienced so much, but inherently the volume of games I have been to takes away from the allure of any single one. Despite this, the first game I go to every year is always a special feeling, and having it be the first game of the Mavericks’ season this year, I wanted to document the experience to look back on.
Before even walking in, the buzz around the stadium was clear. They rolled out the blue carpet and player cutouts on Victory Plaza, and there was not a road within two miles not being traversed by fans. The lines to get in were long well before tip and the excitement was palpable. Once you got inside, the colors and smells of the concession stands helped bring about a sense of deja vu. Public address announcer Sean Heath’s voice crept through the hallways leading to the seats like your mother calling you down for dinner. In an ever-changing world, so much of American Airlines Center was the same, which gives the returning fan a sense of home.
Seeing the players warm up is always a treat, as you gain a new appreciation for just how big they are. This was especially true on Thursday night when Victor Wembanyama towered over 20-plus NBA athletes. He truly felt larger than life. The lights went down and the National Anthem was sung and the lights came back on for a minute while the Spurs’ starting lineup was announced. The arena went dark again, and the Mavericks were ready to be recognized for the first time this year. The announcement of the players was goosebump-inducing. From the confusion of Brandon Williams’ name coming first to the roar for Klay Thompson to the ambiance of Eminence Front by The Who playing during the pregame video (which has been their hype song for as long as I can remember), there was not an aspect of the before-game antics that did not increase your readiness for the game. The only thing left before tipoff was Heath telling the fans to be “rowdy, loud, and proud” from “the opening tip to the final buzzer”. He said his peace and the game was underway.
The tradition (originating from something the Thunder do) of standing until Dallas scores continued, and the fans were able to sit down when Daniel Gafford threw in a hook shot for their first points of 2024-25. The verbal relief of sitting down paled in comparison to the cheer of the next made basket when Klay Thompson’s first field goal as a Maverick went around, up, and down just over a minute later. The rest of the first half was fairly uneventful as Dallas shot poorly and trailed by two. After waiting out the halftime bathroom lines, it was time to get seated for the second half.
The third quarter was far more reminiscent of last year’s team. Every Luka Doncic three felt familiar and exciting, and when Dereck Lively dunked the arena felt the vibrations. Their 40-point third-quarter outburst had the crowd rocking like a playoff game. The fourth quarter had a nervous anxiety to it after Dallas went up by 21 points and Jason Kidd left Luka Doncic and Lively in the game. Many people stayed to the end to hear Heath end the night with his signature “Mavs win! Mavs win!”. As the exits were flooded with happy Mavericks supporters, the drum line could be heard echoing through the concourse. It was a great feeling to be back and an even better one with a Mavericks win.
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Tobin-Tyler: This election could not be more important for the future of women’s rights. The differences in the visions for the future of the country, and interpretation of the past, of the two campaigns are stark. The ideology represented by the Trump-Vance campaign envisions a return to a time when women’s roles were more circumscribed and they were expected to sacrifice their freedoms and economic independence to fulfill their role as mothers. Parts of the religious right are attacking not only access to abortion, but also access to contraception as a way to reign in what some see as too much sexual freedom for women. This vision has been reinforced by the conservative majority of the Supreme Court, which insists that the Constitution should be interpreted through the lens of “history and tradition” and the original public meaning at the time of the country’s founding, a time when women essentially had no rights. In recent cases, it has also signaled its willingness to privilege religious rights over the rights of women and gender minorities.
Blyth: If we are talking about the broad mass of voters whose votes will absolutely not determine the election — say Democratic voters in Massachusetts or Republican voters in Montana — then the cost of living, especially the cost of housing, is a key issue. Unfortunately, there is very little either candidate can do about these factors in the short to medium run (build many more houses, break up concentrated markets) and one of them seems to have little interest in either solution, focusing instead on China and immigration as key themes. In terms of the less than 1% of the population that will decide the election? That’s anyone’s guess. Housing or immigration? Take your pick. And if the Middle East turmoil worsens and that affects gas prices, that adds more uncertainty into the mix. 
Tate: Trump has made race an issue in this campaign. He accused Harris of only recently claiming to be Black. He has falsely accused Haitian immigrants of eating family pets. He said he would change Fort Liberty’s name back to its former Confederate name, Fort Bragg. He has pledged to end DEI programs in the military and in federal offices. He has also attacked Harris’ gender, calling her dumb. Harris has reacted by avoiding any discussion of her race and gender. She generally has not commented on the historic nature of this election, and the fact that she could become the nation’s first Black South Asian female president. When asked directly about Trump’s comment about her racial identity, she refused to answer, saying “next question.” 
Zarate: I expect that race will play a significant role in voter behavior and affect the outcome of this election. Research has found that white racial identity and white racial animus are powerful predictors of support for Trump. Much of the Trump coalition is predicated on stoking white racial animus, and this hasn’t changed during his third campaign for president. If anything, with a woman of color as his opponent, now this strategy becomes even stronger. 
