Tony Romo has a storybook career. From an unknown quarterback at Eastern Illinois University to starting for the Dallas Cowboys and finally being dressed for the Dallas Mavericks.
Yes, that last thing actually happened on Tuesday as the Mavericks capped “Fan Appreciation Night” by honoring the recently-retired signal caller. The festivities included the unique situation of dressing Romo in full Mavs gear, having him go through warm-ups, and eventually sit on the bench while the Mavs lost to the Denver Nuggets.
It was definitely weird. It was also really cool.
Romo showcased some of his basketball talents, hitting jumpers over Devin Harris as they went one-on-one.
Tony Romo takes Devin Harris one on one. Nothing but net. pic.twitter.com/RGbPRdHEqN
— Saad Yousuf (@SaadYousuf126) April 12, 2017
He also put some flair into the layup line:
Buckets!!! #MFFL #FanAppreciationNight pic.twitter.com/LAeS6cCQJ4
— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) April 12, 2017
Romo was appreciative of the whole thing, but if Mavericks owner Mark Cuban had his way, there would have been even more showmanship. According to ESPN’s Todd Archer, Cuban initially intended to actually sign Romo to a contract and have him play in the game. Adam Silver did not oblige.
“Signing him and stuff like that, would have been too much for a lot of reasons,” Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said before his team’s 109-91 loss. “No. 1, he’s a football athlete that’s not ready to play in an NBA game. That’s very risky. No. 2, to sign a guy with all of our requirements from a physical standpoint with the hours and hours of screening and all that kinds of other stuff, it just wasn’t worth going there. And that’s not really what this is about.”
The Mavs have received some criticism for the show, but it all seems very unnecessary. In an entertainment business, Cuban was able to entertain fans of two sports in the city while honoring a legendary athlete for the Cowboys.
