Hubby really wants to go to an NBA game this year, and the closest team to us is in Dallas. I checked their website, but the schedule and ticket prices aren’t listed yet.
About how much do decent tickets run? How often do they usually play? Would it be fairly easy for an out-of-towner to navigate the (stadium?) area? Any advice?
I’m not sure about the specifics of finding your way around town, but I can tell you a bit about the NBA.
The Dallas Mavericks have turned into a pretty good team. “My” team is the Chicago Bulls, but I’ll pull for the Mavs, because the owner, Mark Cuban, seems like a cool guy. The team looks like they are popular and have a pretty good following. From looking at attendance statistics a lot (all?) of the games sell out. You may have to go through a ticket “broker” or ebay (both will be more than face value) if you really want tickets and can’t get them from the team.
Dallas would be a fun team to see play. It has been rumored that Dallas is a possible destination for Shaq, and if he were to bring his attaqing skills to the Big D, tickets will probably be even harder to get.
Sometimes NBA teams will play preseason games (might not be what your husband is looking for) in bigger cities without NBA teams. You might want to check to see if there are any preseason games scheduled for Oklahoma City this year.
Well, according to that link, the Mavs sell out 104.9% of their home games. 
That said, it also lists the Knicks selling out 96.6% of the time, yet I know I can walk up to the Garden box office an hour before tip-off and pick up a decent seat for 30 bucks. YMMV.
NBA teams play roughly three or four games a week during the season. Half are at home, half are on the road, which adds up to 41 regular season home games for you to choose from. Generally they’ll play several home games in a row, followed by several away games, and so forth, rather than alternating home and away. That minimizes travel for the team, but it means that there will be weeks at a time when the Mavs won’t play at home.
The Mavericks are one of the hot tickets in the NBA- very popular team, good team, and the owner, Mark Cuban, is a big celebrity because he’s a real people person. You’ll need to buy well in advance, most likely. The price you’ll pay for tickets will probably range from 30 or so dollars each for upper, upper level tickets, all the way to ridiculously expensive for floor seating. You can pretty much pick your price range from (very rough estimate) about $30 all the way into the thousands.
I’ve never been to Dallas, so I don’t know any specifics, but if American Airlines is anything like every other NBA arena I’ve been to, it shouldn’t be too hard to navigate around, mostly because you’ll probably be gridlocked long enough to consider all possible options before you actually go anywhere. Anyway, you can get the general idea of the layout/ location right here. It’s a very, very nice venue, from what I’ve heard and seen on TV. Cuban spends a buttload of money on the team, (again, part of why he’s popular), so they’ve got all the bells and whistles. If it’s worth the price to you, it seems like a very exciting place to watch a game.
Have to agree. The Dallas Mavericks are indeed one of the hottest NBA tickets around. And if they land Shaq, you’re going to have to buy a ticket several month in advance.
Cuban is a great owner, very fan friendly and very customer service savvy.
The Mavs are coached by Don Nelson, which means they play an extremely up-tempo style of basketball (lots of fastbreaks) and almost no defense so games tend to be very fast paced with lots of scoring. If you can, try and go to a game that plays a similar style like New Jersey, Miami, Sacramento, or Denver. Teams like San Antonio and Detroit won’t be as good to watch because they like to play half-court and so they’ll drag the tempo down (unless you’re like me and you love watching great defense).
Schedules and ticket prices won’t be listed for another month or two.
Well he just had to like the most popular team, didn’t he? 
Thanks for all the advice so far. I don’t follow basketball at all, so I’m completely clueless here.
How much have you all spent in the past for tickets, and what was your seat like?
Dallas has two of the most exciting NBA players. Steve Nash, a Canadian point guard who has the quickest first step off the dribble in the league, and can light up the score board, and Dirk Nowitzki, a 7-Foot German C-F, who shoots like a shooting guard and can dribble like a point guard! :eek:
Fun stuff to watch!
Well, I don’t know about the most popular team, but definitely top 5.
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How much have you all spent in the past for tickets, and what was your seat like?
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Well, tickets vary tremendously between teams. For instance, I’m here in DC where the team is the Wizards. And they, um, suck. Hard. And we get the crappy seats so it’s about $12-15. It’s not bad because of the trade-up possibilities.
I’ll be honest, the cheap seats aren’t very good. Especially if they’re behind the basket. You’d probably be better off watching the game on TV. If you’re going to be traveling a long way to go see a basketball game for the first time, spend as much as your finances will permit to get the best seats you can (remember that second terrace halfcourt is better than floor level behind the basket in some arenas).
I went to games in Denver and Salt Lake City last season. Ticket prices were similar. For what would generally regarded as “good” seats, expect to pay $75+ @. These seats would be between the baskets, lower level, or in the first 10 rows of the upper deck. Dallas has a lot of season ticket holders, so the best seats you might be able to get through the club may not even be very good. A ticket broker might be the only way to get “good” seats.
If you go the broker route, expect to pay a heathy premium over face value if you want to get the tickets ahead of time. Your best bet is to try a scalper around the stadium on game day, or ask a consierge at a local hotel to help you. They know the best brokers and will help you out.
If he wants to see San Antonio or Minnesota or the Lakers, expect to pay big $$.