On my very first trip to Dallas, I had an open night and the Mavericks just happened to have a scheduled game for the night. I checked the market for available tickets and was able to secure a ticket roughly two hours before the game.
The game I witnessed was a Western Conference match-up between the Denver Nuggets. Being able to catch Dirk in action was also something that I had on my list of things to do as well.
Here are my thoughts on American Airlines Center.
Pros
The first thing I noticed when walking up to the arena was the grand entrance. The HD screens and village for the fans built up the excitement for the game that was yet to come.
After entering the arena, you are greeted with a large number of restaurants and concession stands. This was honestly the best thing I have seen. With all of the food options, the prices were very affordable and the lines were short.
There is a wide variety of food and drink options within American Airlines Center. The prices are standard to what you will see at most arenas so you won’t break the bank. There are also several restaurants within the arena for the fan that would like to come in and watch the game while eating a full meal.
American Airlines Center also has some vegetarian options for the fan that doesn’t desire traditional arena food. There are also several suites that are visible from the concourse for the fan looking to spend a little more money to get the full service experience. The suites also have some nice eateries inside of them.
The arena atmosphere was amazing and I felt like I was a part of the game action. There is definitely not a down moment inside of American Airlines Center. They hype team for the arena encourages the fans to get involved in the action as they have a Fan-o-meter to encourage loudness.
With this being my first time in the arena, I wasn’t aware of the Mavs ManiAAC’s as they were sitting a few rows behind me. They are fan favorites and keep the rowdiness level at an all-time high.
Cons
Honestly there are not any noticeable disadvantages to this arena. If I had to nitpick and choose a con it would be only having one championship during the Dirk Nowitzki. The bulk of Dirk’s prime years was spent competing with the Lakers and Spurs for Western Conference dominance and they didn’t always step up.
Overall Game Day Experience
I would give American Airlines Center a 9.5 out of 10. Absolutely amazing arena with a rowdy group of fans that give their all at the games. The downtown setting works for the arena and really ties into the atmosphere. The tickets were fairly priced as I secured 100 level seats for $30 on a Friday night. Great experience and well worth the visit.
