Mavericks fans offer front-row seats to wounded soldiers http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=nba&id=1948420 DALLAS -- They've dodged bombs and bullets, suffered bruises and burns. They've lost limbs and stared at death's door. Jim Leslie figures the least he can do is let these brave U.S. soldiers -- most wounded in Iraq or Afghanistan -- sit on the front row at a Dallas Mavericks game. "It's a small way for me to show some appreciation for what they've done for us," said Leslie, one of dozens of Mavericks season-ticket holders giving up their seats for Saturday night's game. "I still don't think it's enough." In all, about 140 injured soldiers from Brooke Army Medical Center near San Antonio will fly to Dallas -- on a chartered jet donated by American Airlines -- to see the Mavericks play the Atlanta Hawks. They'll enjoy complimentary food and beverages and have their pictures taken with Mavericks players, dancers and officials, including owner Mark Cuban. "This is bigger than the game," Cuban said in an e-mail. "This is a chance for these servicemen and women to feel the admiration and respect of 20,000 people, reinforcing for them that we as a nation feel grateful for what they have done for us." The key playmaker for "Seats for Soldiers" is a season-ticket holder named Neal Hawks, who reluctantly let the Mavericks publicize his name, a team spokeswoman said. Hawks first offered front-row seats to soldiers last season, bringing eight to each of three games. "Last year it gave me the chills to see the ovations that just eight soldiers received," Hawks said in an e-mail. So this season, he approached other season-ticket holders about giving up their seats. He figured he might get 50 or 60 tickets, he said. Instead, he got 133 tickets, all on the front row. The total value of the tickets: roughly $150,000. "Virtually everyone said I could have their tickets," he said. "I even had a couple season-ticket holders who had already given their tickets away go and get them back." For many of the soldiers, it will be their first time to attend an NBA game. Even more importantly, it will be a chance for them to recognize just how much Americans appreciate their service and sacrifice, said Cpl. J.R. Martinez, 21, of Dalton, Ga., who attended one of the games last season. "A lot of these soldiers are definitely right now probably in the depression stage," said Martinez, who was burned over 40 percent of his body when his Humvee hit a land mine in Iraq last year. "For them to go and be able to feel that energy, it's definitely going to help their morale."
wow...this is possibly the classiest move I have ever heard of. major kudos to those Mavs season ticket holders....
poor soldiers gotta watch the Hawks Very classy move by the people.. publicity stunt or not.. cuban and the mavericks do seem to do a lot of things to help people... I'm sure those soldiers won't care much if it was a publicity stunt when they are sitting front row.... I don't think this was a publicity stunt though.. especially since the season ticket holder started it.. not the mavericks it appears
Wasn't there something about military guys at a Rockets home game this week? Don't remember the details.
of course its a publicity stunt. and im not sure i believe this but i think anyone would think 'hmm the hawks? why not the spurs? or miami?' but its nice for the soldiers. so its a win-win. thats how the world works. charities get money cause they are tax deductible. do charities care?
truth hurts? come on man....i guess any act of charity by someone who has money is just a bunch of **** then. i guess the guy who started this thing just did it for publicity too. at what point did it become a publicity stunt? when it was a non publicized event last year? when it was organized by the fans and not by cuban?
Only one thumb up since this was for the Hawks game, which I'll bet many of these 'selfless souls' were going to skip or scalp, anyway. But a thumb up, anyways. Evan
Houstonrocketss, Let me help you out... This was no publicity stunt and I will leave it at that. T_Man
If it was the Spurs, I'd be impressed. Since it's the Hawks, I fart in their general direction. That's pathetic. They can't give up tickets to a game they might want to see? I have a friend whose father-in-law has season tickets bought by his company, 7th row at 3/4 court. Great seats. They'd trickle down to me a couple of times last season when a team no one wants to see comes to town. I saw Miami when they sucked. I saw I think it was Atlanta. Someone with season tickets bought by the company doesn't want to go to every game; they don't like the sport that much, don't follow that closely, and don't have the time for it. The tickets are given away to whoever is willing to take them or go unused if the holder is too lazy to find a taker. Giving the tickets to wounded soldiers when someone else (this Hawks guy) is organizing it is the height of laziness. It's scraps from the table. The more I write the more offended and outraged I feel that they're giving away tickets for the Hawks. As for the question, yes fat cats in Houston who aren't going to waste their time watching the Hawks would gladly let someone else find takers for them.
You see how negative some rockets fans can be. There is no wonder that much flame, hatred and negativity on this board, especially when things are not that smooth recently.
They were showing highlights to that game on NBATV. It was awesome to see the military on the front row. Proud to be an American.
