Dallas Mavericks’ Monta Ellis: ‘I just didn’t love basketball anymore’

While Monta Ellis has had somewhat of a career resurgence with the Dallas Mavericks, there was a time not s long ago where the guard was apparently thinking of hanging up the sneakers.

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A former second-round pick by the Golden State Warriors, Monta Ellis says he was growing tired of losing during his time in the Bay Area and things only grew worse when he joined the Milwaukee Bucks. The mounting losses made Ellis question his spot in the league and the Mississippi native suggested that he no longer loved basketball because of it.

“I just didn’t love basketball anymore,” the nine-year vet says. “I wasn’t happy and I didn’t feel like the teams I was with wanted to win. To me, winning is all that matters and we weren’t even close.”

That’s a sentiment likely shared by many who’ve spent their career playing on losing teams though joining the Dallas Mavericks has helped Ellis see the light again.

“The first time I ever walked into the [Mavericks] locker room, I could feel myself starting to enjoy the game again,” Monta Ellis stated. “That’s when I knew it was going to be different for me. There was just a different vibe that I got when I walked in there, just letting me know that everything was going to change, that it was going to be different here. That’s when I realized what was wrong before.”

While Ellis isn’t scoring at the same pace as he once did, it’s clear he’s found a renewed energy for the game as his numbers with the Dallas Mavericks are up across the board.

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