Dallas Mavericks guard Jason Kidd gets interviewed by local media after practicing in SMU’s Crum Basketball Center Tuesday afternoon. (Casey Lee)

The Mavericks have a new head coach and are practicing in a new facility: SMU’s Crum Basketball Center.

“This is a great situation for us. Get a chance to go down the street and have a $13 or $14 million brand new facility where you have some additional space,” Maverick’s head coach Rick Carlisle said. “In a training camp situation when you have 18 or 19 guys it really helps.”

At the American Airlines Center the Mavericks only have one practice court, the Crum Center gives them two courts and 14 total hoops to shoot at. The Crum Center also has new locker rooms and a new weight room.

“I just think it’s a compliment to our facility that they want to bring their team and utilize the Crum Center,” SMU head basketball coach Matt Doherty said. “It shows people the state of art facility that we have.”

The Crum Basketball Center was dedicated on Feb. 21 after breaking ground in December of 2006. The $13 million, 43,000 square foot building houses a practice court for men and women’s basketball as well as locker rooms and a weight room.

But working out in the Crum Center is not only advantageous for the Mavericks, it is for SMU as well.

“I think its great exposure, the fact that the Mavericks are here,” Doherty said. “Everybody in the country that’s reading about the Mavericks sees SMU in the same article.”

While the Mustangs wont have direct interaction with the practices there is still a benefit to having the Mavericks on campus.

“We are having the opportunity to watch practice. Rick Carlisle has opened practice to me and my staff. Players are walking through, if they have a break in class they can come watch as well,” Doherty said. “Any time you can watch somebody like Rick Carlisle and his staff work we’re always working to pick up drills and techniques.”

It is also a way for SMU to get exposure on a national level.

“If our facility is good enough for Jason Kidd, Dirk Nowitzki and the Mavericks its good enough for a recruit.” Doherty said. “It definitely puts us back as building towards a national program because we will be in a national spotlight.”

The Mavericks will continue to practice in the Crum Center all week.

“It’s state of the art, it’s certainly NBA caliber and it’s world class so we’re fortunate to have something this close that’s this good,” Carlisle said.