The Mavericks hoped that Kidd would provide leadership to the team that for years had been labelled as weak mentally and help Dallas and its franchise-player Dirk Nowitzki to win their first ever NBA Championship. Although already a member of the Mavericks, Kidd started for the Eastern Conference in the 2008 NBA All-Star Game, as he had already been named as a starter prior to the trade. The Mavericks made a strong playoff push following the trade, but despite a 51–31 record, they were only able to secure the seventh seed in the highly competitive Western Conference. In the playoffs, they faced Chris Paul's New Orleans Hornets, and were eliminated in five games in the first round.