Mavericks’ Rolando Blackman Replays Best Episode of Dallas

How good would the Dallas Mavericks have been if Mark Aguirre and Roy Tarpley had played to their potential?

Maverick All-Star Rolando Blackman said: “With a scorer like Mark in a good mood and ready to play, with Roy Tarpley next to him, we could have been one of the top four basketball teams in the league.

“But with us, it’s been like a soap opera. When you talk about us, it’s not that we have a six-game winning streak, it’s who’s missing and who’s not, who wants this and who wants that. It was just terrible.”

Trivia time: Kirk Gibson’s .213 batting average last season was the lowest for an incumbent MVP in the National League in 25 years. What was the previous low?

Give him the hook: Bob Whitsitt, president of the Seattle SuperSonics, on the club’s inability to make a major trade before the NBA deadline: “I feel like a fisherman who threw a few worms out there and the fish are laughing at them.”

Making his points: Larry Bird, on his performance for the Boston Celtics: “I know I can play. The rebounds, the assists, playing the game, is no different than any other season. It’s just the scoring. If I had three, four more points a game, people wouldn’t be saying anything.”

Add Celtics: Forward Kevin McHale on the club’s inconsistency this season: “The unknown is a scary thing, and we’re going into every game with a little bit of the unknown. The more success you’ve had, when things go good, you start to expect it.”

Last add Celtics: Center Robert Parish, on lower scores in the NBA this season: “The game was more physical years ago because you were allowed to hand-check. Teams are playing defense as a team now. We had to learn to play team defense or we’d get run off the court.”

Beam him out: Pat Cummings, on his role as a reserve for the Miami Heat: “I’m so far gone that Captain Kirk and the Enterprise can’t seem to find me.”

Touching them all: Philadelphia 76er guard Hersey Hawkins, on teammate Charles Barkley: “He gets on you about everything. Your clothes, your shoes, your wife, your kid. It doesn’t matter.”

Add Barkley: The 76er forward, on his shooting percentage of .093 on three-point attempts: “That’s not bad. Some guys haven’t made any.”

A new meaning: Roberto Guerrero of Colombia, who studied American history before passing the U. S. Immigration and Naturalization Service’s citizenship examination: “Our biggest race of the year (the Indianapolis 500) is on Memorial Day, and I knew it was important to all Americans. It will become even more special for me this year.”

Accent on learning: How does Minnesota Viking receiver Leo Lewis relax during practice? He reads a dictionary.

Lewis, who has a master’s degree in education from the University of Tennessee, said: “I just open a page and scan it. It’s a nice break from football.”

Hold the pancake: Billy Conn, 72, former world light-heavyweight champion, on why he doesn’t care to appear in the film story of his life, “The Boxer and the Blonde”: “They’re always wanting to put lipstick and rouge on you.”

Trivia answer: Dodger pitcher Sandy Koufax, .095 in 1964.

Quotebook: Joe Paterno, Penn State football coach: “I remember when Notre Dame used to be an academic institution. Now it’s a bank.”