Dirk Nowitzki
Encyclopedia
Dirk Werner Nowitzki (ˈdɪʁk ˈvɛʁnɐ noˈvɪtski) (born June 19, 1978) is a German professional basketball player who plays for the Dallas Mavericks
of the National Basketball Association
(NBA). An alumnus of Röntgen Gymnasium and DJK Würzburg
basketball club, Nowitzki was drafted ninth overall by the Milwaukee Bucks
in the 1998 NBA Draft
, and was immediately traded to the Mavericks, where he has played ever since. Standing , Nowitzki plays the power forward
position but also has the mobility, size, and shooting ability to play the other frontcourt
positions, center
and small forward
.
Nowitzki has led the Mavericks to 11 consecutive NBA Playoffs
(2000–01
to 2010–11
), including an NBA Finals appearance in 2006
and the franchise's first championship in 2011
, making him one of only 5 players in NBA history to win a championship while being the only NBA All-Star on the team. He is a 10-time All-Star and 11-time member of the All-NBA Teams, and the 1st European-born player in NBA history to receive the NBA Most Valuable Player award. He is the first Maverick ever to be voted into an All-NBA Team and also holds several all-time Mavericks franchise records. Only Nowitzki and three other players have ever averaged more than 25 points and 10 rebounds in the NBA playoffs, and only Nowitzki and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
have managed 4 consecutive 30-point, 15-rebound games in the playoffs. Additionally, Nowitzki is the only player in NBA history to get 100 blocks and 150 3-pointers in a single season.
Nowitzki led the German national basketball team to a bronze medal in the 2002 FIBA World Championship
and the silver medal in EuroBasket 2005
, and was leading scorer and elected Most Valuable Player in both tournaments. Nowitzki has been a seven-time European Player of the Year
, being named the Euroscar European Basketball Player of the Year
by the Italian sports newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport for five years in a row, the Mister Europa European Player of the Year by the Italian sports magazine Superbasket in 2005, and the FIBA Europe Basketball Player of the Year the same year.
, Germany
, Dirk Nowitzki comes from a sports family: his mother Helga Nowitzki
was a professional basketball player and his father Jörg-Werner was a handball
player who represented Germany at the highest international level. His older sister Silke Nowitzki
, a local champion in track and field, also became a basketball player and now works for the NBA in International TV. Dirk Nowitzki was a very tall child; most of the time he stood above his peers by a foot or more. He initially played handball and tennis, but soon grew tired of being called a "freak" for his height and eventually turned to basketball. After joining the local DJK Würzburg
, the 15-year-old attracted the attention of former German international basketball player Holger Geschwindner
, who spotted his talent immediately and offered to coach him individually two to three times per week. After getting both the approval of Nowitzki and his parents, Geschwindner put his pupil through an unorthodox training scheme: he emphasized shooting and passing exercises, and shunned weight training and tactical drills, because he felt it was "unnecessary friction." Furthermore, Geschwindner encouraged Nowitzki to play a musical instrument and read literature to make him a more complete personality.
After a year, the coach was so impressed that he said to his pupil: "You must now decide whether you want to play against the best in the world or just stay a local hero in Germany. If you choose latter, we will stop training immediately, because nobody can prevent that anymore. But if you want to play against the best, we have to train on a daily basis." After pondering for two days, Nowitzki decided on the former. Geschwindner let him train seven days a week with DJK Würzburg players and future German internationals Robert Garrett, Marvin Willoughby and Demond Greene, and in the summer of 1994, the 16-year-old Nowitzki made the DJK squad.
to utilise his shooting skills. In the 1994–95 Second Bundesliga season
, ambitious DJK finished as a disappointing sixth of 12 teams; the rookie Nowitzki was often benched and struggled with bad school grades, which forced him to study rather than work on his game. In the next 1995–96 Second Bundesliga season
, Nowitzki established himself as a starter next to Finnish star forward Martti Kuisma and soon became a regular double-digit scorer: after German national basketball coach Dirk Bauermann
saw him score 24 points
in a DJK game, he stated that "Dirk Nowitzki is the greatest German basketball talent of the last 10, maybe 15 years." DJK finished second in the South Division, but could not earn promotion after losing 86–62 in the deciding match versus BG Ludwigsburg: in that game, Nowitzki scored only eight points.
In the 1996–97 Second Bundesliga season
, the team's top scorer Kuisma left the team, and Holger Geschwindner replaced Pit Stahl as head coach. Filling Kuisma's void, Nowitzki averaged 19.4 points per game and led DJK again to second place after the regular season, but could not help his team gain promotion. In the following 1997–98 Second Bundesliga season
, Nowitzki finished his "Abitur
" (German A-levels), but had to do his compulsory military service in the Bundeswehr
(German Military) which lasted from September 1, 1997 to June 30, 1998; Nowitzki described this period as "a tough time at first; we had no privileges and had to participate in all the drills...later [after finishing the tough "Grundausbildung," the most intensive initial part of the service] it was much more relaxed." Concerning basketball, the 18-year old, who had grown to 6 in 11 in (2.11 m) tall, made progress, leading DJK to a 36:4 point total (in Germany, a victory gives 2:0 points and a loss 0:2) and ending as leading scorer with 28.2 points per game. In the promotion playoffs, DJK finally broke its hex, finishing at first place with 14:2 points and earning promotion; Nowitzki scored 26 points in the deciding 95–88 win against Freiburg and was voted "German Basketballer of the Year" by the German BASKET magazine.
Abroad, Nowitzki's progress was noticed. In 1996, FC Barcelona Bàsquet
wanted to sign him, but Nowitzki refused to move before finishing his German A-levels. A year later, the teenager participated in the Nike
"Hoop Heroes Tour," where he played against NBA stars like Charles Barkley
and Scottie Pippen
. In a 30-minute show match, Nowitzki outplayed Barkley and even dunked
on him, causing the latter to exclaim: "The boy is a genius. If he wants to enter the NBA, he can call me." On March 29, 1998, Nowitzki was chosen to play in the Nike Hoop Summit
, one of the premier talent watches in U.S. men's basketball. In a match between the U.S. talents and the international talents, Nowitzki scored 33 points on 6-of-12 shooting, 14 rebounds
and 3 steals
for the internationals and outplayed future US NBA stars Rashard Lewis
and Al Harrington
. He impressed with a combination of quickness, ball handling, and shooting range, and from that moment a multitude of European and NBA clubs wanted to recruit him.
and military service behind him, Nowitzki looked to the NBA for his future. Projected to be seventh pick in the 1998 NBA Draft
, he passed up many college offers and leapt directly into the NBA as a then-still rare prep-to-pro player. In particular, Rick Pitino
and Don Nelson
, head coaches of the Boston Celtics
and Dallas Mavericks
respectively, were highly interested in acquiring him. After a 45-minute private workout with Pitino, where Nowitzki showcased his versatile shooting, rebounding and passing skills, the Boston coach immediately compared him to Celtics legend Larry Bird
; Pitino assured Nowitzki that he would draft him with the Celtics' first-round draft pick at number ten.
However, Pitino's plan was foiled by Nelson, whose team had the sixth pick. Nelson worked out draft day deals with the Milwaukee Bucks
and the Phoenix Suns
: the Mavericks wanted Nowitzki and Suns reserve point guard
Steve Nash
; the Bucks desired muscular forward Robert Traylor
, who was projected to be drafted before Nowitzki; and the Suns had set their sights on forward Pat Garrity, who was projected as a low first round pick. In the draft, the Mavericks drafted Traylor with their sixth pick, and the Bucks selected Nowitzki with their ninth and Garrity with their nineteenth pick. The Mavericks then traded Traylor to the Bucks for Nowitzki and Garrity, and they in return traded the latter to Phoenix for Nash.
In retrospect, Don Nelson, who had once coached the Bucks, had an outstanding trade instinct, essentially trading future career underachievers Traylor and Garrity for two future NBA MVPs in Nowitzki and Nash; in addition, the new recruits quickly became close friends. Nowitzki became only the fourth German player in NBA history, following pivots
Uwe Blab
and Christian Welp
and All-Star swingman
Detlef Schrempf
, who was a 35-year old veteran player of the Portland Trail Blazers
when his young compatriot arrived. Nowitzki finished his DJK career as the only Würzburg player to have ever made the jump into the NBA.
In Dallas, Nowitzki joined a franchise which had last made the playoffs in 1990. Shooting guard
Michael Finley
captained the squad, supported by 7 in 6 in (2.29 m) center Shawn Bradley
, once a number two draft pick, and team scoring leader Cedric Ceballos
, an ex-Laker forward. Nowitzki experienced a rocky start: prior to the 1998–99 NBA season, NBA commissioner David Stern
wanted to introduce a salary cap
, causing the NBA players' union to declare a strike, the combination putting the entire season in jeopardy. In limbo, Nowitzki returned to DJK Würzburg and played thirteen games before both sides worked out a late compromise that resulted in a shortened 1998–1999 schedule of only 50 instead of 82 regular season games.
When the season finally started, Nowitzki struggled. Played as a power forward
by coach Don Nelson, the lanky 20-year old felt overpowered by the more athletic NBA forwards, was intimidated by the expectations as a number nine pick, and played bad defense, causing hecklers to taunt him as "Irk Nowitzki," omitting the "D" which stands for "defense" in basketball slang. He only averaged 8.2 points and 3.4 rebounds in 20.4 minutes of playing time. Looking back, Nowitzki said: "I was so frustrated I even contemplated going back to Germany... [the jump from Second Bundesliga to the NBA] was like jumping out of an airplane hoping the parachute would somehow open." The Mavericks only won 19 of their 50 games and missed the playoffs, although Nowitzki completed the season with eight double-digit scoring games out of the last twelve.
In the 1999–2000 NBA season, Don Nelson wanted to use Nowitzki as a point forward
to make use of his passing skills. However, one of the most important moves was made off the hardwood: until then, the owner of the Mavericks was Ross Perot, Jr., who had bought the franchise for $
125 million, but had no plans of investing in players and admitted he knew little of basketball. On January 4, 2000, he sold the Mavericks to Internet billionaire Mark Cuban
for $280 million. Cuban quickly invested into the Mavericks and restructured the franchise, attending every game at the sidelines, buying the team a $46 million six-star Boeing 757
for traveling, and increasing franchise revenues to over $100 million. Nowitzki lauded Cuban: "He created the perfect environment... we only have to go out and win." As a result of Nelson's tutelage, Cuban's improvements and his own progress, Nowitzki significantly improved his averages. The second-year pro now averaged 17.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists
per game in 35.8 minutes, had nine double-double games, and scored a career-high 32 points twice. He was voted runner-up in the NBA Most Improved Player Award
behind Jalen Rose
, and made it into the NBA All-Star Sophomore squad along with peers Paul Pierce
and Vince Carter
. In the traditional Rookie-Sophomore match, he scored 17 points, grabbed six rebounds and dished out four assists in an overtime
loss against the rookie team led by Steve Francis
and Lamar Odom
. The 7 in 0 in (2.13 m) Nowitzki also was chosen for the NBA All-Star Three Point Shootout
, becoming the tallest player ever to participate. After draining 15 three point shots in a row in the first shootout, he entered the final round, where he finished as runner-up to Jeff Hornacek
. While he improved on an individual level, the Mavericks missed the playoffs
after a mediocre 40–42 season.
2000–01 season
In the following 2000–01 NBA season, Nowitzki further improved his averages, recording 21.8 points, 9.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. Now playing the power forward
position, he became the second player in NBA history after Robert Horry
to score 100 three-pointers and 100 blocks
in the regular season by registering 151 and 101, respectively. As a sign of his growing importance, he joined team captain Finley as only one of two Mavericks to play and start in all 82 games and had 10 games in which he scored at least 30 points. Nowitzki became the first Maverick ever to be voted into the All-NBA squads, making the Third Team. In addition, his best friend Nash became a valuable point guard, and with Finley scoring more than ever, pundits were calling this trio the "Big Three" of the Mavericks.
Posting a 53–29 record in the regular season, the Mavericks reached the playoffs
for the first time since 1990. As the fifth seed, they were paired against the Utah Jazz
of all-time assist leader John Stockton
and second all-time leading scorer Karl Malone
. After losing the first two games, Nowitzki scored 33 points in both games 3 and 4 and helped to tie the series. In Game 5, the Mavericks trailed the entire game until Calvin Booth
drained a jump shot which put them ahead 84–83 with 9.8 seconds to go. Jazz players Bryon Russell
and Malone missed last-second shots and the Mavericks won, setting up a meeting with Texas rivals San Antonio Spurs
of All-Star power forward Tim Duncan
. The Mavericks lost their first three games, and Nowitzki fell ill with flu and later lost a tooth after a collision with Spurs guard Terry Porter
. After a Game 4 win, Nowitzki scored 42 points and 18 rebounds in Game 5, but could not prevent a deciding 105–87 loss. While Sports Illustrated
pointed out that the Mavericks shot badly during Game 5, Nowitzki was lauded for scoring his playoff career-high 42 points. The German said: "It's a disappointment to end the season on a blowout."
2001–02 season
Prior to the 2001–02 NBA season, Nowitzki signed a six-year, $90 million contract extension, which made him the second highest-paid German athlete after Formula One
champion Michael Schumacher
. He continued to improve, now averaging 23.4 points, 9.9 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game, was voted into the All-NBA Second Team and into his first All-Star Game. He also had 13 games with at least 30 points and 10 rebounds, third behind Shaquille O'Neal
and Tim Duncan. Powered by new recruit Nick Van Exel
, who became a high-scoring sixth man
, the Mavericks "Big Three" convincingly made the playoffs
with a 57–25 record.
The Mavericks swept Kevin Garnett
and the Minnesota Timberwolves
in the first round of the 2002 NBA Playoffs
3–0: Nowitzki outscored Garnett with 33.3 points per game versus 24.0. In the second round, the Mavericks met the Sacramento Kings
with rival power forward Chris Webber
. After splitting the first two games, Kings coach Rick Adelman
changed his defensive scheme: before, Webber had defended Nowitzki one-on-one, but now, the Kings coach ordered his smaller but quicker player Hedo Turkoglu to cover the German. Turkoglu should use his agility to play Nowitzki tightly, and if the taller Maverick tried to post up Turkoglu, Webber would double team
Nowitzki. In Game 3 in Dallas, the Mavericks lost 125–119; Nowitzki scored only 19 points and said: "I simply could not pass Turkoglu, and if I did, I ran into a double team and committed too many turnovers." In Game 4, more frustration awaited the German: the Mavericks gave away a 14-point lead, although the entire Kings starting frontcourt of center Vlade Divac
and power forward Chris Webber
(both fouled out) and small forward Peja Stojakovic
(injury) were eliminated in the closing stages of the game. Nowitzki missed two potentially game deciding jump shots, and the Mavericks lost 115–113 at home. In Game 5, the demoralised Texans were no match for the spirited Kings, lost 114–101 and were eliminated again. Among others, nba.com remarked that the Kings defended better than the Mavericks: in those five games, the statisticians counted 115 Sacramento layup
s against the Mavericks, meaning the Kings averaged 23 uncontested baskets (i.e. 46 easy points) per game. However, Nowitzki received a consolation award: the Gazzetta dello Sport voted him as "European Basketballer of the Year," his 104 votes lifting him over second-placed Dejan Bodiroga
(54) and Stojakovic (50).
2002–03 season
Before the 2002–03 NBA season, Don Nelson and Mark Cuban put more emphasis on defense in the training drills, specialising in a zone defense anchored by prolific shotblockers Raef LaFrentz
and Shawn Bradley
. The Mavericks won their first 11 games, and Finley, Nash and Nowitzki were voted "Western Conference Players of the Month" in November 2002. In that season, Nowitzki lifted his averages again, now scoring 25.1 points, 9.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. In addition, the German had 41 double-double games, the seventh highest figure that season. By averaging 25.1, he became the first European to score 2,000 points in a season. As a reward, he was voted into the All-Star game and the All-NBA Second Team again, and was also runner-up in the "German Athlete of the Year" election, only losing to ski jumper Sven Hannawald
. He led the Mavericks to a franchise-high 60–22 record, which earned them the third seed: as a result, the Mavericks had to play sixth seed Portland Trail Blazers
in the 2003 NBA Playoffs
. Now playing in a best-of-seven series instead of the former best-of-five, Dallas quickly won the first three games, but then the Mavericks completely lost their rhythm and lost the next three matches. In Game 7, Portland held the game close, but 90 seconds before the end, Nowitzki hit a clutch three point shot, and the game ended 107–95 for the Mavericks. "This was the most important basket of my career," he later said, "I was not prepared to go on vacation that early." He later added in an ESPN interview: "We had to be more physical in the paint and rebound the ball. We worked hard all season to get the home-court advantage and we used that advantage today."
In the next round, the Mavericks met the Kings again. After losing the first game at home by a score of 113–124, Nowitzki (25 points) and veteran sixth man
Van Exel (36) led Dallas to a spectacular 132–110 Game 2 win in which the Mavericks scored 83 points in the first half. Helped by the fact that Kings star forward Chris Webber injured his meniscus
, Nowitzki and Van Exel led the Mavericks to a 141–137 overtime win in Game 3, before dropping Game 4 99–83, where Nowitzki only scored 11 points and was ejected after angrily kicking over a load of towels. After splitting the next two games, Nowitzki delivered a clutch performance in Game 7, scoring 30 points, grabbing 19 rebounds and playing strong defense, and led the Mavericks to a series-deciding 112–99 win. ESPN
lauded Nowitzki as "Big D," and after again winning a Game 7, the German added: "We've really learned how to close games out."
In the Western Conference Finals, the Mavericks met the San Antonio Spurs of Tim Duncan again. In Game 1 in San Antonio, Nowitzki scored 38 points on Duncan and led his team to a 113–110 win. In Game 2, Duncan quickly put Nowitzki in foul trouble, and the Spurs equalised the series with a 132–110 win. In Game 3, fate struck as Nowitzki went up for a rebound and Spurs guard Manu Ginóbili
collided with his knee, forcing him out of the series: without their top scorer, the Mavericks still fought valiantly and trailed 3–2, before Spurs guard Steve Kerr
got hot from three-point range late in Game 6 to help San Antonio clinch the series with a 90–78 victory. Don Nelson later commented: "We were playing so well for so long and the bottom just dropped out...We went cold at the wrong time." Nowitzki took very little consolation in the fact that he again was voted "European Basketballer of the Year" and was named "Best European Basketballer" in a general survey of the NBA general managers.
2003–04 season
In the 2003–04 NBA season, Mark Cuban and Don Nelson decided to add more offensive wing players to their squad. As a result, the Mavericks acquired two All-Star forwards, namely Golden State Warriors
All-Star forward Antawn Jamison
(along with Danny Fortson
, Jiri Welsch
and Chris Mills
, for Van Exel and role players) and Antoine Walker
(Boston Celtics) who came for center Raef LaFrentz
. Basketball experts were wary about latter trade, because it sent away the Mavericks starting center; they argued it left a hole in the middle that the aging, injury-prone backup pivot Shawn Bradley could not fill anymore. Unable to trade for a new center, Don Nelson decided to start the prolific rebounder Nowitzki at pivot, put Walker on Nowitzki's usual power forward spot and played Jamison as a high-scoring sixth man
. To cope with his more physical role, Nowitzki put on 20 lb (9.1 kg) of muscle mass over summer, sacrificed part of his agility, and put more emphasis on defense rather than scoring: as a result, his averages fell for the first time in his career, dropping to 21.8 points, 8.7 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game, but he still led the Mavericks in scoring, rebounding, steals (1.2 spg) and blocks (1.35 bpg). These figures earned him nominations for the All-Star game and the All-NBA Third Team. Compiling a 52–30 record, the Mavericks met their familiar rivals Sacramento Kings again, but were eliminated in just five games.
2004–05 season
Before the 2004–05 NBA season, the Mavericks were re-tooled again. Defensive center Erick Dampier
was acquired from the Golden State Warriors
, but Nowitzki's close friend Steve Nash
left Dallas and returned to the Phoenix Suns
as a free agent
. During the season, long-time head coach Don Nelson resigned, and his assistant Avery Johnson
took on coaching duties. In the midst of these changes, Nowitzki stepped up his game and averaged 26.1 points a game (a career-high) 9.7 rebounds, and his 1.5 blocks and 3.1 assists were also career numbers. In addition, Nowitzki scored at least 10 points in every game and was only one of four players who registered at least 1.2 steals and 1.2 blocks per game. This was also his second 2,000 point season, his 26.1 points scoring average set a new record by a European player. On December 2, 2004, Nowitzki scored 53 points in an overtime win against the Houston Rockets
, a career best. As a reward, Nowitzki was voted to the All-NBA First Team for the first time. He also placed third in the league's MVP voting, behind Nash and Shaquille O'Neal
. By being elected to the All-NBA First Team, Nowitzki became the first player who did not attend a United States high school or college to be on the All-NBA First Team.
However, the Mavericks had a subpar 2005 NBA Playoffs
campaign. In the first round, Dallas met the Houston Rockets
of scoring champion Tracy McGrady
and 7–6 center Yao Ming
, and Nowitzki was expected to average high figures against unheralded forward Ryan Bowen
: nba.com described Bowen as "overmatched" versus the German. Instead, Bowen limited Nowitzki to just 21 points in Game 1 and 26 points in Game 2, where the latter only hit 8 of 26 shots from the field. The Rockets took a 2–0 series lead before the Mavericks won three games in a row. After losing Game 6, Dallas won Game 7 convincingly and won the series even though Nowitzki struggled with his shooting. In the Western Conference Semifinals, the Mavericks met the Phoenix Suns, the new club of Nash. They split the first four games, before the Suns won the last two games. In Game 6, which the Mavericks lost in overtime, Nowitzki was again not at his best: he scored 28 points, but also sank only 9 of his 25 field goal attempts; in addition, he was visibly irritated, repeatedly shouting at his team mates and missing all his five shots in overtime.
2005–06 season
Prior to the 2005–06 NBA season, veteran Mavericks captain Michael Finley
was waived over the summer, and now Nowitzki was the last player remaining from the Mavericks' "Big Three" of Nash, Finley, and himself. Nowitzki blossomed as the sole franchise player, averaging 26.6 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 2.8 assists. Not only was this his third 2,000 point season, but his scoring average of 26.6 points was highest ever by a European. He improved his shooting percentage, setting personal season records in field goals
(48.0%), three-point shots (40.6%) and free throw
s (90.1%). During the 2006 All-Star Weekend in Houston
, Nowitzki scored 18 points to defeat Seattle SuperSonics
guard Ray Allen
and Washington Wizards
guard Gilbert Arenas
in the Three-Point Shootout contest.
Nowitzki paced the Mavericks to a 60-win season. The team finished with the third-best record in the league, behind the defending champion San Antonio Spurs
and defending Eastern Conference champion Detroit Pistons
. As in the 2004–05 season, he finished third in the league's MVP voting, this time behind Nash and LeBron James
. He was again elected to the first team All-NBA squad. Nowitzki confirmed his superstar status during the playoffs
as he averaged 27.0 points, 11.7 rebounds, and 2.9 assists. The Mavericks swept the Memphis Grizzlies
with 4–0, with Nowitzki's most spectacular play being a clutch three-point shot in the closing seconds of Game 3 which tied the game and forced overtime. In the Western Conference Semifinals, the Mavericks played against the San Antonio Spurs again. After splitting the first six games, the Mavericks took a 20-point lead in Game 7 before Spur Manu Ginóbili
broke a tie at 101 by hitting a clutch 3 with 30 seconds left. On the next play, Nowitzki completed a three-point play, which tied the game at 104. In the end, the Mavericks won 119–111, and Nowitzki ended the game with 37 points and 15 rebounds. Nowitzki commented: "I don't know how the ball went in. Manu hit my hand. It was a lucky bounce."
The Mavericks advanced to the Western Conference Finals, where they would again meet Nash and the Phoenix Suns. Nowitzki scored 50 points to lead the Mavericks to a victory in the crucial Game 5 with the series tied 2–2; the Mavericks would go on to win in six games and face the Miami Heat
in the 2006 NBA Finals
. A content Nowitzki commented: "We've been a good road team all season long, we believed in each other. We went through some ups and downs this season, but the playoffs is all about showing heart and playing together." Of Nowitzki's performance, ESPN
columnist Bill Simmons
would remark, "Dirk is playing at a higher level than any forward since Bird
." The Mavericks took an early 2–0 lead, but then gave away a late 15-point lead in a Game 3 loss and finally fell to a scoring onslaught by Heat Finals MVP Dwyane Wade
: Wade scored at least 36 points in the next four games, which the Heat all won. Nowitzki only made 20 of his last 55 shots in the final 3 games as the Mavericks lost the Finals series 4–2 to the Heat. The German was criticized by ESPN as "clearly... not as his best this series" and remarked: "That was a tough loss (in Game 3) and that really changed the whole momentum of the series... After that, they got confidence. They played a lot better afterwards."
2006–07 season
The 2006–07 season was the year Nowitzki was named the league's Most Valuable Player. He shot a career-best 50.2% from the field, and recorded averages of 24.6 points, 8.9 rebounds, and 3.4 assists and led the Mavericks to a franchise-high 67 wins, which meant Dallas earned the first seed of the 2007 NBA Playoffs
. Nowitzki was touted as the overwhelming favorite for the Most Valuable Player award, and was expected to lead the Mavericks to an easy win against the eighth seed Golden State Warriors
, despite the Warriors having won all three regular season meetings against Dallas. However, the Mavericks ended up losing to the Warriors in six games, marking the first time a #8 seed has beaten the #1 in a best of seven series in NBA history. In the clinching Game 6, Nowitzki shot just 2–13 from the field for only eight points. Defended by Stephen Jackson
, Nowitzki averaged nearly five points less than his regular season average in that series and shot only 38.3% from the field as compared to 50.2% during the regular season. He described this loss as a low point in his career: "This series, I couldn't put my stamp on it the way I wanted to. That's why I'm very disappointed." In spite of this historic playoffs loss, Nowitzki was named the NBA's regular season Most Valuable Player and beat his friend and back-to-back NBA MVP Nash with more than 100 votes. He also became the first European-born player in NBA history to receive the honor.
2007–08 season
The 2007–08 campaign saw another first-round playoffs exit for Nowitzki and his Mavericks. Despite a mid-season blockbuster trade that sent veteran NBA All-Star Jason Kidd
to Dallas, the Mavericks could only finish seventh in a highly competitive Western Conference. Nowitzki averaged 23.6 points, 8.6 rebounds, and a career-high 3.5 assists for the season. In the playoffs
, they faced rising star Chris Paul
's New Orleans Hornets, and were eliminated in five games. The few positive highlights that season for the German were his first career triple-double against the Milwaukee Bucks
on February 6, 2008, with 29 points, 10 rebounds, and a career-high 12 assists, and on March 8, 2008 (34 points against the New Jersey Nets
), when he surpassed Rolando Blackman
with his 16,644th point to become the Mavericks' all-time career points leader.
2008–09 season
The 2008–09 NBA season
saw Nowitzki finish with averages of 25.9 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 2.4 assists. He was fourth in the league in scoring, and garnered his fourth All-NBA First Team
selection. He also made the 2009 All-Star game, his eighth appearance. Nowitzki led Dallas to a tight finish towards the playoffs
, finishing 50–32 for the season (6th in the West), after a slow 2–7 start. In the playoffs, the German led Dallas to an upset win over long-time rival San Antonio (3rd seed), winning the first round series 4–1. The Mavericks, however, fell short against the Denver Nuggets
4–1 in the second round, with Nowitzki averaging 34.4 points, 11.6 rebounds, and 4 assists in the series.
2009–10 season
The Mavericks finished the 2009–10 NBA season
as the second seed for the playoffs
—it was their 10th consecutive season with at least 50 regular season wins. Notable additions to the squad were multiple All-Stars Shawn Marion
and Caron Butler
, with the latter coming in the latter half of the season. On January 13, 2010, Nowitzki became the 34th player in NBA history—and the first European—to hit the 20,000 point milestone, while ending the regular season with averages of 25 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1 block. He was selected to the 2010 All-Star game, his ninth appearance. The Mavericks faced off against San Antonio once more in the first round of the playoffs, but for the third time in four seasons, they failed to progress to the next round. Nowitzki was the only consistent player throughout the series for the Mavericks, averaging 26.7 points per outing, while the likes of Jason Terry, second leading scorer for the Mavericks averaged only 12.7 points per game compared to his 16.6 regular season. Despite being a free agent, on July 5, 2010 Nowitzki agreed to remain with Dallas by re-signing to a four-year, $80 million deal.
2010–11 season
The most significant changes to the 2010–11
team roster was the arrival of Tyson Chandler
via a trade. Nowitzki was injured in the middle of the season, during which the Mavericks would record their worst losing streak in over a decade. Nowitzki finished the regular season with averages of 23 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists. Despite missing 9 games, Nowitzki was selected to the 2011 All-Star game, his tenth appearance. The Mavericks concluded the regular season with 57 wins, seeding third behind the Spurs and the Lakers
for the 2011 NBA Playoffs
. During the playoffs, despite their seeding, many predicted that Dallas would lose in the first round to Portland
, and after blowing a 23-point third-quarter lead in Game 4 to even the series at 2, the Mavericks appeared ready for another postseason collapse. However, Dallas won the final two games to advance, and then swept Kobe Bryant
, Pau Gasol
, and the two-time defending champion Lakers in the semifinals in Phil Jackson
's final year as an NBA coach. In the Conference Finals, they faced the Oklahoma City Thunder
and their All-NBA duo of Kevin Durant
and Russell Westbrook
. In Game 1, Nowitzki scored 48 points while shooting 12/15 from the field while setting an NBA record of 24 consecutive free throws made in a game as well as most free throws in a game without a miss. In the pivotal Game 4, with Dallas holding a 2–1 series lead, Nowitzki scored 40 points to rally his team from a 99–84 deficit in the 4th quarter and eventually win 112–105 in overtime to take a commanding 3–1 series lead. Dallas overcame another fourth-quarter deficit in Game 5 to win the series and the Western Conference Championship. In the Finals
, Dallas once again faced Dwyane Wade's Miami Heat, which had acquired All-Stars LeBron James
and Chris Bosh
before the season began. During the Game 1 loss in Miami, Nowitzki tore a tendon in his left middle finger; however, MRIs were negative, and Nowitzki vowed that the injury would not be a factor. In Game 2, Nowitzki led a Dallas rally from a 88–73 4th quarter deficit, capped by a driving left-handed layup over Bosh to tie the series at 1. After Nowitzki missed a potential game-tying shot at the end of Game 3, Miami took a 2–1 series lead. Despite carrying a 101° fever in Game 4, Nowitzki scored the winning basket to tie the series yet again at 2, evoking comparisons of Michael Jordan
's flu-ridden performance against Utah in the 1997 NBA Finals
. Dallas went on to win the next two games, with Nowitzki scoring 10 fourth-quarter points in the series-clinching game in Miami, bringing the first championship to the franchise. In the series, Nowitzki scored 62 points total in the six fourth quarters, equaling the combined fourth quarter output of James and Wade. He was named Finals MVP, joining a distinguished list of 10 other players to have been an NBA champion, NBA Finals MVP, NBA regular season MVP, and a 10-time All-Star. For the whole 2011 playoffs, Nowitzki averaged 27.7 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 2.5 assists in 21 games.
since the 1999 FIBA European championships
. In his debut tournament, the 21-year old rookie emerged as the main German scorer, but Germany finished seventh and failed to qualify for the 2000 Olympic Games
. In the 2001 FIBA European Championships
, Nowitzki was top scorer with 28.7 points per game, and narrowly lost the MVP vote to Serbian player Peja Stojaković
. Germany reached the semi-finals and were close to beating host nation Turkey
, but down by three, Hedo Turkoglu hit a three-point buzzer beater
, and the Turks eventually won in overtime. Germany then lost 99–90 against Spain
, and did not win a medal. However, with averages of 28.7 points and 9.1 rebounds, Nowitzki led the tournament in both statistics, and was voted to the All-Star team. Back home, the German basketball team attracted up to 3.7 million television viewers, a German basketball record at the time.
Nowitzki finally earned his first medal when he led Germany to a bronze medal in the 2002 World Championships
. In the quarter-finals against the Pau Gasol
-led Spain, Spain led 52–46 after three quarters, but then Nowitzki scored 10 points in the last quarter and led Germany to a 70–62 win. In the semi-finals, his team played against the Argentinian
squad led by Manu Ginóbili
, but despite leading 74–69 four minutes from the end and despite Argentina losing Ginobili to a foot injury, the South Americans won 86–80. However, the Germans won 117–94 against New Zealand
in the consolation finals and won bronze, and tournament top scorer Nowitzki (24.0 ppg) was elected MVP. Back in Germany, over 4 million television viewers followed the games, an all-time record in German basketball history.
The 2003 FIBA European Championships
proved to be a major disappointment for Nowitzki and his German squad. In a preparation game, he suffered a foot injury after a collision with French player Florent Pietrus
; as a result, Nowitzki played inconsistently and was also often target of hard fouls. In the decisive second round match against Italy
(only the winner was allowed to play the medal round), Germany lost 86–84, finished ninth and did not qualify for the 2004 Olympic Games
. Nowitzki scored 22.5 points per game (third overall), but in general seemed to lack focus and dominance due to his injury.
In the 2005 FIBA European Championships
, Nowitzki came back strong. He surprisingly led a depleted German squad into the Finals, beating title favorites Slovenia
in the quarter-finals and Spain in the semi-finals on the way. Eurobasket pundits praised Nowitzki in both matches: against Slovenia (76–62), the forward scored a game high 22 points and commented: "The Slovenians underestimated us. They said we were the team they wanted and that was wrong, you shouldn't do that in the quarter-finals." Against Spain (74–73), Nowitzki scored a game-high 27 points and scored the decisive basket: down by one and with only a few seconds to go, he drove on Spanish forward Jorge Garbajosa
, and hit a baseline jump shot over Garbajosa's outstretched arms with 3.9 seconds to go. The German later commented: "It was indescribable. Garbajosa kind of pushed me towards the baseline so I just went with it." Despite losing the Finals 78–62 to the Greeks
, Nowitzki was the tournament's leading scorer (26.7 ppg) and second-leading rebounder (10.8 rpg) and shot blocker (1.8 bpg), and was voted Most Valuable Player of the tournament. When he was subbed out towards the end of the final, Nowitzki received standing ovation from the crowd, which he later recalled as "one of the best moments of [his] career". In the 2006 FIBA World Championship
s, Nowitzki led the German team to an eighth place and commented: "It's tough luck. But overall, finishing eighth in the world is not bad."
In the 2007 FIBA European Championships
, in which the top three teams automatically qualified for the 2008 Olympics
, Nowitzki led Germany to a fifth place. He was the leading scorer with 24.0 points per game. The fifth place meant that Germany fell short of direct qualification, but was allowed to participate in the 2008 Olympic Qualifying Tournament. Nowitzki led Germany into a decisive match against Puerto Rico
for the last remaining slot. In that crucial match, he scored a game-high 32 points and was vital for the 96–82 win which sent the German basketball team to their first Olympics since the 1992 Summer Olympics
. Nowitzki was chosen to be the flag bearer
for the German Olympic Team at the Opening Ceremony
for the 2008 Olympics. Nowitzki led the German team to a tenth place finish, and averaged 17.0 points, and 7.6 rebounds for the tournament. In 2009, Nowitzki skipped the 2009 FIBA European Championships
. In July 2010 he said that he would skip the 2010 FIBA World Championship
.
In the summer of 2011 Nowitzki, together with Chris Kaman
, played in the EuroBasket 2011
to help his team qualify for the 2012 Summer Olympics
. This mission failed when the German team ended the tournament in ninth place.
Nowitzki is a versatile frontcourt player who mostly plays the power forward position, but has also played center, small forward and point forward
throughout his career. Nowitzki hits 88% of his free throws, hits nearly 50% of his field goal attempts and 40% of his three-point shots, and won the 2006 NBA All-Star Three-Point Shootout competition. In 2006–07 Nowitzki became only the fifth member of the NBA's 50–40–90 Club for players who shot 50% or better from the field, 40% or better on three-pointers, and 90% or better on free-throws in a single season while achieving the NBA league minimum number of makes in each category.
Throughout Nowitzki's career, he has responded to the increased pressure of the playoffs by increasing his productivity. In the regular season he averages 23 points, 8.4 rebounds. In the playoffs he averages 25.9 points and 10.4 rebounds, which only Hakeem Olajuwon
, Bob Pettit
and Elgin Baylor
have managed to do. In the most pressure packed games, such as playoff elimination games he averages 28.4 points, 12.2 rebounds. He has had 13 elimination games where he scored 30 or more points, with only Jerry West
having more at 14. Of the top 100 elimination game performances in the last 20 years, Nowitzki has had the best performances in 8 of them, more than any other player in the NBA in that same time frame.
His shooting accuracy combined with his long seven-foot frame and unique shooting mechanics, such as having a release point above his head, makes contesting his jump shots incredibly difficult. Additionally, he can put the ball down and drive with it from the perimeter, like few have been able to do with his size. NBA.com lauds his versatility by stating: "The 7–0 forward who at times mans the pivot can strike fear in an opponent when he corrals a rebound and leads the break or prepares to launch a three-point bomb." Charles Barkley
says the best way to guard Nowitzki is to "get a cigarette and a blindfold". When defenses guard Nowitzki with one of their biggest men, who is then pulled out to the perimeter, the net effect is that while Nowitzki's own statistics are actually compromised by being out of position to offensively rebound or make an easy close-range basket, the rest of the team becomes more offensively potent with the defense having to be spread across the floor. Often, this creates player mismatches that Nowitzki's teammates can exploit.
Some critics have alleged Nowitzki's defense is a weakness, as he averages just over one block per game and never made an All-Defense Team. However, playing more around the perimeter takes him out of position where a typical power forward would be detracts from his overall defensive stats. Despite the claims of lack of defense, he is ranked 8th in active players for defensive win shares, placing him higher than Kobe Bryant
, who has made the All-Defensive team 11 times.
Nowitzki is the 34th player in NBA history, and the first European, to hit the 20,000-point milestone. Apart from being the Dallas Mavericks' all-time leader in points, rebounds, field goals, field goal attempts, 3-pointers, 3-point attempts, free throws, and free-throw attempts, Nowitzki has made the NBA All-Star games ten times, and the All-NBA Team
s eleven times. He was voted NBA MVP
of the 2006–07 NBA season, becoming the first European player to receive the honor, as well as the MVP of the 2011 NBA Finals. Other achievements include winning the 2006 NBA All-Star Three-Point Shootout
, being voted European Basketballer of the Year five times in a row by La Gazzetta dello Sport
, and being the leading scorer and MVP of the 2002 FIBA World Championship
, and Eurobasket 2005
tournaments.
| align="left" | 1998–99
| align="left" | Dallas
| 47 || 24 || 20.4 || .405 || .206 || .773 || 3.4 || 1.0 || .6 || .6 || 8.2
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 1999–00
| align="left" | Dallas
| 82 || 81 || 35.8 || .461 || .379 || .830 || 6.5 || 2.5 || .8 || .8 || 17.5
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2000–01
| align="left" | Dallas
| 82 || 82 || 38.1 || .474 || .387 || .838 || 9.2 || 2.1 || 1.0 || 1.2 || 21.8
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2001–02
| align="left" | Dallas
| 76 || 76 || 38.0 || .477 || .397 || .853 || 9.9 || 2.4 || 1.1 || 1.0 || 23.4
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2002–03
| align="left" | Dallas
| 80 || 80 || 39.0 || .463 || .379 || .881 || 9.9 || 3.0 || 1.4 || 1.0 || 25.1
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2003–04
| align="left" | Dallas
| 77 || 77 || 37.9 || .462 || .341 || .877 || 8.7 || 2.7 || 1.2 || 1.4 || 21.8
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2004–05
| align="left" | Dallas
| 78 || 78 || 38.7 || .459 || .399 || .869 || 9.7 || 3.1 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 26.1
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2005–06
| align="left" | Dallas
| 81 || 81 || 38.1 || .480 || .406 || .901 || 9.0 || 2.8 || .7 || 1.0 || 26.6
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2006–07
| align="left" | Dallas
| 78 || 78 || 36.2 || .502 || .416 || .904 || 8.9 || 3.4 || .7 || .8 || 24.6
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2007–08
| align="left" | Dallas
| 77 || 77 || 36.0 || .479 || .359 || .879 || 8.6 || 3.5 || .7 || .9 || 23.6
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2008–09
| align="left" | Dallas
| 81 || 81 || 37.7 || .479 || .359 || .890 || 8.4 || 2.4 || .8 || .8 || 25.9
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2009–10
| align="left" | Dallas
| 81 || 80 || 37.5 || .481 || .421 || .915 || 7.7 || 2.7 || .9 || 1.0 || 25.0
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2010–11
| align="left" | Dallas
| 73 || 73 || 34.3 || .517 || .393 || .892 || 7.0 || 2.6 || .5 || .6 || 23.0
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 993 || 968 || 36.5 || .476 || .381 || .877 || 8.4 || 2.7 || .9 || 1.0 || 23.0
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | All-Star
| align="left" |
| 9 || 2 || 17.0 || .458 || .227 || .875 || 4.1 || 1.6 || .8 || .4 || 10.6
| align="left" | 2001
| align="left" | Dallas
| 10 || 10 || 39.9 || .423 || .283 || .883 || 8.1 || 1.4 || 1.1 || .8 || 23.4
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2002
| align="left" | Dallas
| 8 || 8 || 44.6 || .445 || .571 || .878 || 13.1 || 2.3 || 2.0 || .8 || 28.4
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2003
| align="left" | Dallas
| 17 || 17 || 42.5 || .479 || .443 || .912 || 11.5 || 2.2 || 1.2 || .9 || 25.3
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2004
| align="left" | Dallas
| 5 || 5 || 42.4 || .450 || .467 || .857 || 11.8 || 1.4 || 1.4 || 2.6 || 26.6
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2005
| align="left" | Dallas
| 13 || 13 || 42.4 || .402 || .333 || .829 || 10.1 || 3.3 || 1.4 || 1.6 || 23.7
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2006
| align="left" | Dallas
| 23 || 23 || 42.7 || .468 || .343 || .895 || 11.7 || 2.9 || 1.1 || .6 || 27.0
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2007
| align="left" | Dallas
| 6 || 6 || 39.8 || .383 || .211 || .840 || 11.3 || 2.3 || 1.8 || 1.3 || 19.7
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2008
| align="left" | Dallas
| 5 || 5 || 42.2 || .473 || .333 || .808 || 12.0 || 4.0 || .2 || 1.4 || 26.8
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2009
| align="left" | Dallas
| 10 || 10 || 39.5 || .518 || .286 || .925 || 10.1 || 3.1 || .9 || .8 || 26.8
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2010
| align="left" | Dallas
| 6 || 6 || 38.8 || .547 || .571 || .952 || 8.2 || 3.0 || .8 || .7 || 26.7
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2011
| align="left" | Dallas
| 21 || 21 || 39.3 || .485 || .460 || .941 || 8.1 || 2.5 || .6 || .6 || 27.7
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 124 || 124 || 41.3 || .463 || .384 || .892 || 10.4 || 2.6 || 1.1 || 1.0 || 25.9
! Year
! Competition
! GP
! MPG
! FG%
! 3P%
! FT%
! RPG
! APG
! SPG
! BPG
! PPG
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 1997
| align="left" | EuroBasket qualification
| 1 || 3.0 || .000 || .000 || .000 || .0 || .0 || .0 || .0 || .0
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 1999
| align="left" | EuroBasket qualification
| 3 || 16.7 || .600 || .750 || 1.000 || 4.0 || .3 || .3 || .0 || 13.7
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 1999
| align="left" | EuroBasket
| 9 || 31.3 || .582 || .529 || .771 || 3.4 || 1.8 || .9 || .0 || 15.2
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2001
| align="left" | EuroBasket
| 7 || 33.9 || .516 || .426 || .714 || 9.1 || 1.9 || 1.3 || 1.0 || 28.7
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2002
| align="left" | World Championship
| 9 || 31.2 || .407 || .286 || .921 || 8.2 || 2.7 || 1.2 || 2.0 || 24.0
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2003
| align="left" | EuroBasket
| 4 || 34.8 || .453 || .455 || .841 || 6.2 || 1.0 || 1.3 || 1.8 || 22.5
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2005
| align="left" | EuroBasket qualification
| 5 || 32.4 || .500 || .364 || .809 || 11.6 || 2.2 || 1.8 || .8 || 23.6
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2005
| align="left" | EuroBasket
| 7 || 36.9 || .411 || .371 || .885 || 10.6 || 1.7 || 1.1 || 1.9 || 26.1
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2006
| align="left" | World Championship
| 9 || 33.6 || .434 || .286 || .823 || 9.2 || 2.8 || 1.0 || .6 || 23.2
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2007
| align="left" | EuroBasket
| 9 || 33.9 || .432 || .313 || .860 || 8.7 || 1.6 || .9 || .9 || 24.0
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2008
| align="left" | Olympic Games qualification
| 5 || 31.2 || .500 || .435 || .922 || 8.2 || 2.6 || .2 || 1.0 || 26.6
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2008
| align="left" | Olympic Games
| 5 || 28.4 || .419 || .417 || .958 || 8.4 || .6 || .2 || .0 || 17.0
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2011
| align="left" | EuroBasket
| 8 || 29.9 || .442 || .421 || .933 || 6.6 || 1.4 || .4 || .4 || 19.5
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 81 || 31.6 || .457 || .382 || .855 || 7.1 || 1.8 || .9 || .9 || 22.0
, describes Dirk Nowitzki, four years her junior, as a confident but low-key character, unspoiled by money and fame. He also enjoys reading and playing the saxophone
. Nowitzki passed his Abitur
examination at Röntgen Gymnasium Grammar School of Würzburg
. He also founded the "Dirk Nowitzki Foundation," a charity which aims at fighting poverty in Africa
.
Nowitzki dated Sybille Gerer, a female basketball player from his local club DJK Würzburg. The relationship started in 1992 and held on for 10 years before it eventually ended; Nowitzki said, "At the end, we found out we developed in separate ways...It did not work anymore, but we are still good friends." He added: "I surely want to start a family and have kids, but I cannot imagine it happening before I become 30." In 2010, Nowitzki met and began dating Jessica Olsson, sister of twin Swedish footballers Martin Olsson
and Marcus Olsson
.
Nowitzki acknowledged close ties to his mentor Holger Geschwindner, whom he called his best friend. He is also good friends with his ex-teammate Steve Nash
. Nash said of playing with Nowitzki, "We were both joining a new club, living in a new city, we were both single and outsiders: this creates a bond...He made life easier for me and I for him...our friendship was something solid in a very volatile world." Nowitzki added, "He would have also become a good friend if we had met at the supermarket."
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
of the National Basketball Association
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
(NBA). An alumnus of Röntgen Gymnasium and DJK Würzburg
DJK Würzburg
DJK Würzburg is a German sports club located in Würzburg. DJK stands for "Deutsche Jugendkraft" . The club belongs to the DJK-Sportverband , which is affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church in Germany...
basketball club, Nowitzki was drafted ninth overall by the Milwaukee Bucks
Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks are a professional basketball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. They are part of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1968 as an expansion team, and currently plays at the Bradley Center....
in the 1998 NBA Draft
1998 NBA Draft
The 1998 NBA Draft took place on June 24, 1998 at General Motors Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. This draft helped turn around three struggling franchises: the Dallas Mavericks, the Sacramento Kings, and the Toronto Raptors....
, and was immediately traded to the Mavericks, where he has played ever since. Standing , Nowitzki plays the power forward
Power forward (basketball)
Power forward is a position in the sport of basketball. The position is referred to in playbook terms as the four position and is commonly abbreviated "PF". It has also been referred to as the "post" position. Power forwards play a role similar to that of center in what is called the "post" or "low...
position but also has the mobility, size, and shooting ability to play the other frontcourt
Frontcourt
Frontcourt is a term used in basketball referring to the small forward, power forward, and center positions as a cohesive unit....
positions, center
Center (basketball)
The center, colloquially known as the five or the post, is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. The center is normally the tallest player on the team, and often has a great deal of strength and body mass as well...
and small forward
Small forward
The small forward, or colloquially known as three, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically somewhat shorter, quicker, and leaner than power forwards and centers, but on occasion are just as tall...
.
Nowitzki has led the Mavericks to 11 consecutive NBA Playoffs
NBA Playoffs
The National Basketball Association Playoffs is a best-of-seven elimination tournament among sixteen teams in the Eastern Conference and Western Conference , ultimately deciding the final four teams who will play in the NBA Conference Finals.-Format:Following the NBA regular season, eight teams in...
(2000–01
2001 NBA Playoffs
The 2001 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2000–01 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers winning their second consecutive championship by defeating the Eastern Conference champion Philadelphia 76ers...
to 2010–11
2011 NBA Playoffs
The 2011 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2010–11 season. Eight teams from each of the league's two conferences qualified for the playoffs, all seeded 1 to 8 in a tournament bracket, with all rounds in a best-of-seven format. The 2011 NBA Playoffs began on...
), including an NBA Finals appearance in 2006
2006 NBA Finals
The 2006 NBA Finals was the championship series of the 2005–06 National Basketball Association season. The Miami Heat won the championship in six games over the Dallas Mavericks, winning the final game at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, and becoming the third team to win a championship...
and the franchise's first championship in 2011
2011 NBA Finals
The 2011 NBA Finals was the championship series of the 2010–11 season of the National Basketball Association and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Western Conference champion Dallas Mavericks defeated the Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat, 4–2, to win their first NBA title...
, making him one of only 5 players in NBA history to win a championship while being the only NBA All-Star on the team. He is a 10-time All-Star and 11-time member of the All-NBA Teams, and the 1st European-born player in NBA history to receive the NBA Most Valuable Player award. He is the first Maverick ever to be voted into an All-NBA Team and also holds several all-time Mavericks franchise records. Only Nowitzki and three other players have ever averaged more than 25 points and 10 rebounds in the NBA playoffs, and only Nowitzki and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is a retired American professional basketball player. He is the NBA's all-time leading scorer, with 38,387 points. During his career with the NBA's Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers from 1969 to 1989, Abdul-Jabbar won six NBA championships and a record six regular season...
have managed 4 consecutive 30-point, 15-rebound games in the playoffs. Additionally, Nowitzki is the only player in NBA history to get 100 blocks and 150 3-pointers in a single season.
Nowitzki led the German national basketball team to a bronze medal in the 2002 FIBA World Championship
2002 FIBA World Championship
The 2002 FIBA World Championship was an international basketball tournament held by the International Basketball Federation in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA from August 29 to September 8, 2002.-Venues:-Squads:...
and the silver medal in EuroBasket 2005
Eurobasket 2005
The EuroBasket 2005 was held in Serbia and Montenegro between 16 September and 25 September 2005. Greece won the gold medal by defeating Germany, while France won the bronze medal over Spain...
, and was leading scorer and elected Most Valuable Player in both tournaments. Nowitzki has been a seven-time European Player of the Year
European Basketball Player of the Year Awards
The European Basketball Player of the Year Awards are the three awards given out on a yearly basis to the best male European basketball player of the year. More specifically, those are the Mr. Europa award, which began in 1976, the Euroscar, established in 1979, and the FIBA Europe Player of the...
, being named the Euroscar European Basketball Player of the Year
Euroscar Award
The Euroscar European Player of the Year Award known as European basketball's Oscar award, is an annual basketball award that started in 1979. The award names each year's best European basketball player, regardless of where he plays in the world, including NBA players. The award is judged on the...
by the Italian sports newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport for five years in a row, the Mister Europa European Player of the Year by the Italian sports magazine Superbasket in 2005, and the FIBA Europe Basketball Player of the Year the same year.
Early years
Born in WürzburgWürzburg
Würzburg is a city in the region of Franconia which lies in the northern tip of Bavaria, Germany. Located at the Main River, it is the capital of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. The regional dialect is Franconian....
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Dirk Nowitzki comes from a sports family: his mother Helga Nowitzki
Helga Nowitzki
Helga Nowitzki is a German former international basketball player. She is the mother of Dirk Nowitzki and Silke Nowitzki....
was a professional basketball player and his father Jörg-Werner was a handball
Team handball
Handball is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each pass a ball to throw it into the goal of the other team...
player who represented Germany at the highest international level. His older sister Silke Nowitzki
Silke Nowitzki
Silke Nowitzki is a German former international basketball player. She is the manager of her brother Dirk Nowitzki....
, a local champion in track and field, also became a basketball player and now works for the NBA in International TV. Dirk Nowitzki was a very tall child; most of the time he stood above his peers by a foot or more. He initially played handball and tennis, but soon grew tired of being called a "freak" for his height and eventually turned to basketball. After joining the local DJK Würzburg
DJK Würzburg
DJK Würzburg is a German sports club located in Würzburg. DJK stands for "Deutsche Jugendkraft" . The club belongs to the DJK-Sportverband , which is affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church in Germany...
, the 15-year-old attracted the attention of former German international basketball player Holger Geschwindner
Holger Geschwindner
Holger Geschwindner is a former basketball player, and is the mentor, coach and friend of the National Basketball Association's Dallas Mavericks power forward Dirk Nowitzki...
, who spotted his talent immediately and offered to coach him individually two to three times per week. After getting both the approval of Nowitzki and his parents, Geschwindner put his pupil through an unorthodox training scheme: he emphasized shooting and passing exercises, and shunned weight training and tactical drills, because he felt it was "unnecessary friction." Furthermore, Geschwindner encouraged Nowitzki to play a musical instrument and read literature to make him a more complete personality.
After a year, the coach was so impressed that he said to his pupil: "You must now decide whether you want to play against the best in the world or just stay a local hero in Germany. If you choose latter, we will stop training immediately, because nobody can prevent that anymore. But if you want to play against the best, we have to train on a daily basis." After pondering for two days, Nowitzki decided on the former. Geschwindner let him train seven days a week with DJK Würzburg players and future German internationals Robert Garrett, Marvin Willoughby and Demond Greene, and in the summer of 1994, the 16-year-old Nowitzki made the DJK squad.
DJK Würzburg (1994–98)
When Nowitzki joined the team, DJK played in the Second Bundesliga, South Division. His first trainer was Pit Stahl, who played the tall teenager as an outside-scoring forward rather than an inside-scoring centerCenter (basketball)
The center, colloquially known as the five or the post, is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. The center is normally the tallest player on the team, and often has a great deal of strength and body mass as well...
to utilise his shooting skills. In the 1994–95 Second Bundesliga season
1995 in basketball
-Professional:*Men**1995 NBA Finals: Houston Rockets over the Orlando Magic 4-0. MVP: Hakeem Olajuwon*** 1995 NBA Playoffs***1994–95 NBA season***1995 NBA Draft**Eurobasket: Yugoslavia 96, Lithuania 90*Women**Eurobasket Women: Ukraine def. Italy...
, ambitious DJK finished as a disappointing sixth of 12 teams; the rookie Nowitzki was often benched and struggled with bad school grades, which forced him to study rather than work on his game. In the next 1995–96 Second Bundesliga season
1996 in basketball
-1996 Olympics:*Men: United States of America 96, Yugoslavia 69*Women: United States of America 111, Australia 87-Professional:*Men**1996 NBA Finals: Chicago Bulls over the Seattle SuperSonics 4-2...
, Nowitzki established himself as a starter next to Finnish star forward Martti Kuisma and soon became a regular double-digit scorer: after German national basketball coach Dirk Bauermann
Dirk Bauermann
Dirk Bauermann is a German basketball coach. He is the current head coach of the German national basketball team since 2003, after a previous stint in 1994.- Club head coaching positions :...
saw him score 24 points
Point (basketball)
Points in basketball are used to keep track of the score in a game. Points can be accumulated by making field goals or free throws ....
in a DJK game, he stated that "Dirk Nowitzki is the greatest German basketball talent of the last 10, maybe 15 years." DJK finished second in the South Division, but could not earn promotion after losing 86–62 in the deciding match versus BG Ludwigsburg: in that game, Nowitzki scored only eight points.
In the 1996–97 Second Bundesliga season
1997 in basketball
-Professional:*Men**1997 NBA Finals: Chicago Bulls over the Utah Jazz 4-2. MVP: Michael Jordan*** 1997 NBA Playoffs***1996–97 NBA season***1997 NBA Draft**Eurobasket: Yugoslavia 61, Italy 49*Women...
, the team's top scorer Kuisma left the team, and Holger Geschwindner replaced Pit Stahl as head coach. Filling Kuisma's void, Nowitzki averaged 19.4 points per game and led DJK again to second place after the regular season, but could not help his team gain promotion. In the following 1997–98 Second Bundesliga season
1998 in basketball
-World Championships:*Men Yugoslavia 64, Russia 62*Women USA 71, Russia 65-Professional:*Men**1998 NBA Finals: Chicago Bulls over the Utah Jazz 4-2. MVP: Michael Jordan*** 1998 NBA Playoffs, 1998-99 NBA season, 1998 NBA Draft**Eurobasket: None....
, Nowitzki finished his "Abitur
Abitur
Abitur is a designation used in Germany, Finland and Estonia for final exams that pupils take at the end of their secondary education, usually after 12 or 13 years of schooling, see also for Germany Abitur after twelve years.The Zeugnis der Allgemeinen Hochschulreife, often referred to as...
" (German A-levels), but had to do his compulsory military service in the Bundeswehr
Bundeswehr
The Bundeswehr consists of the unified armed forces of Germany and their civil administration and procurement authorities...
(German Military) which lasted from September 1, 1997 to June 30, 1998; Nowitzki described this period as "a tough time at first; we had no privileges and had to participate in all the drills...later [after finishing the tough "Grundausbildung," the most intensive initial part of the service] it was much more relaxed." Concerning basketball, the 18-year old, who had grown to 6 in 11 in (2.11 m) tall, made progress, leading DJK to a 36:4 point total (in Germany, a victory gives 2:0 points and a loss 0:2) and ending as leading scorer with 28.2 points per game. In the promotion playoffs, DJK finally broke its hex, finishing at first place with 14:2 points and earning promotion; Nowitzki scored 26 points in the deciding 95–88 win against Freiburg and was voted "German Basketballer of the Year" by the German BASKET magazine.
Abroad, Nowitzki's progress was noticed. In 1996, FC Barcelona Bàsquet
FC Barcelona Bàsquet
FC Barcelona Bàsquet, known as FC Barcelona Regal for sponsorship reasons, is a Spanish professional basketball club. It is part of the FC Barcelona sports club and was founded on August 24, 1926 which makes it the oldest club in Liga ACB. The club competes in the Asociación de Clubes de Baloncesto...
wanted to sign him, but Nowitzki refused to move before finishing his German A-levels. A year later, the teenager participated in the Nike
Nike, Inc.
Nike, Inc. is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, which is part of the Portland metropolitan area...
"Hoop Heroes Tour," where he played against NBA stars like Charles Barkley
Charles Barkley
Charles Wade Barkley is a former American professional basketball player. Nicknamed "Sir Charles" and "The Round Mound of Rebound", Barkley established himself as one of the National Basketball Association's most dominating power forwards...
and Scottie Pippen
Scottie Pippen
Scottie Maurice Pippen is a retired American professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association . He is most remembered for his time with the Chicago Bulls, with whom he was instrumental in six NBA Championships and their record 1995–96 season of 72 wins...
. In a 30-minute show match, Nowitzki outplayed Barkley and even dunked
Slam dunk
A slam dunk is a type of basketball shot that is performed when a player jumps in the air and manually powers the ball downward through the basket with one or both hands over the rim. This is considered a normal field goal attempt; if successful it is worth two points. The term "slam dunk" was...
on him, causing the latter to exclaim: "The boy is a genius. If he wants to enter the NBA, he can call me." On March 29, 1998, Nowitzki was chosen to play in the Nike Hoop Summit
Nike Hoop Summit
The Nike Hoop Summit is a basketball all-star game sponsored by Nike, held once a year, which features the USA Basketball Men's Junior Select Team against a World Select team of international players. The players demonstrate their skills and hope to attract attention from either NBA scouts or...
, one of the premier talent watches in U.S. men's basketball. In a match between the U.S. talents and the international talents, Nowitzki scored 33 points on 6-of-12 shooting, 14 rebounds
Rebound (basketball)
A rebound in basketball is the act of successfully gaining possession of the basketball after a missed field goal or free throw. Rebounds in basketball are a routine part in the game, as all possessions change after a shot is successfully made...
and 3 steals
Steal (basketball)
In basketball, a steal occurs when a defensive player legally causes a turnover by his positive, aggressive action. This can be done by deflecting and controlling, catching, or batting to a teammate a pass or dribble of an offensive player...
for the internationals and outplayed future US NBA stars Rashard Lewis
Rashard Lewis
Rashard Quovon Lewis is an American professional basketball player, currently with the NBA's Washington Wizards as a small forward and a power forward.-Seattle SuperSonics:...
and Al Harrington
Al Harrington
Albert "Al" Harrington is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for the NBA's Denver Nuggets...
. He impressed with a combination of quickness, ball handling, and shooting range, and from that moment a multitude of European and NBA clubs wanted to recruit him.
Difficult start (1998–99)
After leading DJK Würzburg to promotion and with his AbiturAbitur
Abitur is a designation used in Germany, Finland and Estonia for final exams that pupils take at the end of their secondary education, usually after 12 or 13 years of schooling, see also for Germany Abitur after twelve years.The Zeugnis der Allgemeinen Hochschulreife, often referred to as...
and military service behind him, Nowitzki looked to the NBA for his future. Projected to be seventh pick in the 1998 NBA Draft
1998 NBA Draft
The 1998 NBA Draft took place on June 24, 1998 at General Motors Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. This draft helped turn around three struggling franchises: the Dallas Mavericks, the Sacramento Kings, and the Toronto Raptors....
, he passed up many college offers and leapt directly into the NBA as a then-still rare prep-to-pro player. In particular, Rick Pitino
Rick Pitino
Rick Pitino is an American basketball coach. Since 2001, he has been the head coach at the University of Louisville. He has also served as head coach at Boston University, Providence College and the University of Kentucky, leading that program to the NCAA championship in 1996...
and Don Nelson
Don Nelson
Donald Arvid "Don" Nelson is a former NBA player and head coach. He coached the Milwaukee Bucks, the New York Knicks, the Dallas Mavericks, and the Golden State Warriors....
, head coaches of the Boston Celtics
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics are a National Basketball Association team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1946, the team is currently owned by Boston Basketball Partners LLC. The Celtics play their home games at the TD Garden, which...
and Dallas Mavericks
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
respectively, were highly interested in acquiring him. After a 45-minute private workout with Pitino, where Nowitzki showcased his versatile shooting, rebounding and passing skills, the Boston coach immediately compared him to Celtics legend Larry Bird
Larry Bird
Larry Joe Bird is a former American NBA basketball player and coach. Drafted into the NBA sixth overall by the Boston Celtics in 1978, Bird started at small forward and power forward for thirteen seasons, spearheading one of the NBA's most formidable frontcourts that included center Robert Parish...
; Pitino assured Nowitzki that he would draft him with the Celtics' first-round draft pick at number ten.
However, Pitino's plan was foiled by Nelson, whose team had the sixth pick. Nelson worked out draft day deals with the Milwaukee Bucks
Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks are a professional basketball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. They are part of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1968 as an expansion team, and currently plays at the Bradley Center....
and the Phoenix Suns
Phoenix Suns
The Phoenix Suns are a professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association and the only team in their division not to be based in California. Their home arena since 1992 has been the US...
: the Mavericks wanted Nowitzki and Suns reserve point guard
Point guard
Point guard , also called the play maker or "the ball-handler", is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position – essentially, he is expected to run the team's offense by controlling the ball and making sure that...
Steve Nash
Steve Nash
Stephen John "Steve" Nash, OC, OBC is a South African-born Canadian professional basketball player who plays point guard for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association . Nash enjoyed a successful high-school basketball career, and he was eventually given a scholarship by Santa Clara...
; the Bucks desired muscular forward Robert Traylor
Robert Traylor
Robert DeShaun "Tractor" Traylor was an American professional basketball player.-High school and college:...
, who was projected to be drafted before Nowitzki; and the Suns had set their sights on forward Pat Garrity, who was projected as a low first round pick. In the draft, the Mavericks drafted Traylor with their sixth pick, and the Bucks selected Nowitzki with their ninth and Garrity with their nineteenth pick. The Mavericks then traded Traylor to the Bucks for Nowitzki and Garrity, and they in return traded the latter to Phoenix for Nash.
In retrospect, Don Nelson, who had once coached the Bucks, had an outstanding trade instinct, essentially trading future career underachievers Traylor and Garrity for two future NBA MVPs in Nowitzki and Nash; in addition, the new recruits quickly became close friends. Nowitzki became only the fourth German player in NBA history, following pivots
Center (basketball)
The center, colloquially known as the five or the post, is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. The center is normally the tallest player on the team, and often has a great deal of strength and body mass as well...
Uwe Blab
Uwe Blab
Uwe Konstantin Blab is a retired German professional basketball player who had a five year career in the NBA.-School and college:...
and Christian Welp
Christian Welp
Christian Ansgar Welp is a retired German professional basketball player. Welp, a 213 cm , 111 kg center, became the leading scorer in Washington Huskies history as a college basketball player...
and All-Star swingman
Swingman
A Swingman is a basketball term denoting a player who can play both the small forward and shooting guard positions, and, in essence, swing between the shooting guard and small forward positions." Swingmen males are often between 6'5" and 6'8" .John Havlicek, who played for the Boston Celtics in...
Detlef Schrempf
Detlef Schrempf
Detlef Schrempf is a retired German NBA basketball player.-High school and college career:...
, who was a 35-year old veteran player of the Portland Trail Blazers
Portland Trail Blazers
The Portland Trail Blazers, commonly known as the Blazers, are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The Trail Blazers originally played their home games in the...
when his young compatriot arrived. Nowitzki finished his DJK career as the only Würzburg player to have ever made the jump into the NBA.
In Dallas, Nowitzki joined a franchise which had last made the playoffs in 1990. Shooting guard
Shooting guard
The shooting guard , also known as the two or off guard, is one of five traditional positions on a basketball team. Players of the position are often shorter, leaner, and quicker than forwards. A shooting guard's main objective is to score points for his team...
Michael Finley
Michael Finley
Michael Howard Finley is a retired American professional basketball player. He last played for the Boston Celtics of the NBA.-High school career:...
captained the squad, supported by 7 in 6 in (2.29 m) center Shawn Bradley
Shawn Bradley
Shawn Paul Bradley is a retired American and German basketball player who played center for the Philadelphia 76ers, the New Jersey Nets and the Dallas Mavericks in the National Basketball Association. At tall, Bradley was one of the tallest players in NBA history...
, once a number two draft pick, and team scoring leader Cedric Ceballos
Cedric Ceballos
Cedric Z. Ceballos is an American professional basketball player. As a small forward, he played most notably for the Los Angeles Lakers and the Phoenix Suns, later finishing his NBA career with the Dallas Mavericks, Detroit Pistons and Miami Heat.Ceballos attended college at Ventura College and...
, an ex-Laker forward. Nowitzki experienced a rocky start: prior to the 1998–99 NBA season, NBA commissioner David Stern
David Stern
David Joel Stern is the commissioner of the National Basketball Association. He started with the Association in 1966 as an outside counsel, joined the NBA in 1978 as General Counsel, and became the league's Executive Vice President in 1980. He became Commissioner in 1984 succeeding Larry O'Brien...
wanted to introduce a salary cap
Salary cap
In professional sports, a salary cap is a cartel agreement between teams that places a limit on the amount of money that can be spent on player salaries. The limit exists as a per-player limit or a total limit for the team's roster, or both...
, causing the NBA players' union to declare a strike, the combination putting the entire season in jeopardy. In limbo, Nowitzki returned to DJK Würzburg and played thirteen games before both sides worked out a late compromise that resulted in a shortened 1998–1999 schedule of only 50 instead of 82 regular season games.
When the season finally started, Nowitzki struggled. Played as a power forward
Power forward (basketball)
Power forward is a position in the sport of basketball. The position is referred to in playbook terms as the four position and is commonly abbreviated "PF". It has also been referred to as the "post" position. Power forwards play a role similar to that of center in what is called the "post" or "low...
by coach Don Nelson, the lanky 20-year old felt overpowered by the more athletic NBA forwards, was intimidated by the expectations as a number nine pick, and played bad defense, causing hecklers to taunt him as "Irk Nowitzki," omitting the "D" which stands for "defense" in basketball slang. He only averaged 8.2 points and 3.4 rebounds in 20.4 minutes of playing time. Looking back, Nowitzki said: "I was so frustrated I even contemplated going back to Germany... [the jump from Second Bundesliga to the NBA] was like jumping out of an airplane hoping the parachute would somehow open." The Mavericks only won 19 of their 50 games and missed the playoffs, although Nowitzki completed the season with eight double-digit scoring games out of the last twelve.
Mark Cuban and the "Big Three" (1999–2004)
1999–2000 seasonIn the 1999–2000 NBA season, Don Nelson wanted to use Nowitzki as a point forward
Point forward
Point forward is an unofficial playing position in basketball for those who share the attributes of both a point guard and a forward.A point forward is usually described as a forward who possesses the ball handling skills and court vision to bring the ball up the court and to initiate the team's...
to make use of his passing skills. However, one of the most important moves was made off the hardwood: until then, the owner of the Mavericks was Ross Perot, Jr., who had bought the franchise for $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
125 million, but had no plans of investing in players and admitted he knew little of basketball. On January 4, 2000, he sold the Mavericks to Internet billionaire Mark Cuban
Mark Cuban
Mark Cuban is an American business magnate and investor. He is the owner of the National Basketball Association's Dallas Mavericks, Landmark Theatres, and Magnolia Pictures, and the chairman of the HDTV cable network HDNet....
for $280 million. Cuban quickly invested into the Mavericks and restructured the franchise, attending every game at the sidelines, buying the team a $46 million six-star Boeing 757
Boeing 757
The Boeing 757 is a mid-size, narrow-body twin-engine jet airliner manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Passenger versions of the twinjet have a capacity of 186 to 289 persons and a maximum range of , depending on variant and cabin configuration...
for traveling, and increasing franchise revenues to over $100 million. Nowitzki lauded Cuban: "He created the perfect environment... we only have to go out and win." As a result of Nelson's tutelage, Cuban's improvements and his own progress, Nowitzki significantly improved his averages. The second-year pro now averaged 17.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists
Assist (basketball)
In basketball, an assist is attributed to a player who passes the ball to a teammate in a way that leads to a score by field goal, meaning that he or she was "assisting" in the basket. There is some judgment involved in deciding whether a passer should be credited with an assist...
per game in 35.8 minutes, had nine double-double games, and scored a career-high 32 points twice. He was voted runner-up in the NBA Most Improved Player Award
NBA Most Improved Player Award
The National Basketball Association's Most Improved Player Award is an annual National Basketball Association award given since the 1985–86 NBA season, to the most improved player of the regular season. The winner is selected by a panel of sportswriters throughout the United States and Canada,...
behind Jalen Rose
Jalen Rose
Jalen Anthony Rose is a retired American professional basketball player, who currently works as a sports analyst for the sports television network ESPN...
, and made it into the NBA All-Star Sophomore squad along with peers Paul Pierce
Paul Pierce
Paul Anthony Pierce , nicknamed The Truth, is an American professional basketball player for the Boston Celtics of the NBA. He earned First Team All-America honors in his junior year at Kansas, and has been a starter every season since being selected by the Celtics with the 10th overall pick in the...
and Vince Carter
Vince Carter
Vincent Lamar "Vince" Carter is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Suns. He is a shooting guard who can also play small forward....
. In the traditional Rookie-Sophomore match, he scored 17 points, grabbed six rebounds and dished out four assists in an overtime
Overtime (sports)
Overtime or extra time is an additional period of play specified under the rules of a sport to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw. In most sports, this extra period is only played if the game is required to have a clear winner, as in single-elimination...
loss against the rookie team led by Steve Francis
Steve Francis
Steven D'Shawn Francis is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Beijing Ducks of the Chinese Basketball Association. He had also played for the Houston Rockets, Orlando Magic, and New York Knicks...
and Lamar Odom
Lamar Odom
Lamar Joseph Odom is an American professional basketball forward with the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association.-Early life:...
. The 7 in 0 in (2.13 m) Nowitzki also was chosen for the NBA All-Star Three Point Shootout
Three-point Shootout
The Three-Point Shootout is a National Basketball Association contest held on the Saturday before the annual All-Star Game as part of the All-Star Weekend. In this contest, participants attempt to make as many three-point field goals as possible from five positions behind the three-point arc...
, becoming the tallest player ever to participate. After draining 15 three point shots in a row in the first shootout, he entered the final round, where he finished as runner-up to Jeff Hornacek
Jeff Hornacek
Jeffrey John Hornacek is a retired American basketball player who played at the shooting guard position in the NBA from 1986–2000.-Elementary and high school:...
. While he improved on an individual level, the Mavericks missed the playoffs
2000 NBA Playoffs
The 2000 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1999–2000 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers win their first championship in twelve years by defeating the Eastern Conference champion Indiana Pacers...
after a mediocre 40–42 season.
2000–01 season
In the following 2000–01 NBA season, Nowitzki further improved his averages, recording 21.8 points, 9.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. Now playing the power forward
Power forward (basketball)
Power forward is a position in the sport of basketball. The position is referred to in playbook terms as the four position and is commonly abbreviated "PF". It has also been referred to as the "post" position. Power forwards play a role similar to that of center in what is called the "post" or "low...
position, he became the second player in NBA history after Robert Horry
Robert Horry
Robert Keith Horry Jr. is a retired American basketball player and current sports commentator. He played 16 seasons in the National Basketball Association , winning seven championships, the most of any player not to have played on the 1960s Boston Celtics...
to score 100 three-pointers and 100 blocks
Block (basketball)
In basketball, a block , not to be confused with blocking, occurs when a defensive player legally deflects a field goal attempt from an offensive player. The defender must not touch the offensive player's hands or otherwise a foul is called. In order to be legal, the block must occur while the shot...
in the regular season by registering 151 and 101, respectively. As a sign of his growing importance, he joined team captain Finley as only one of two Mavericks to play and start in all 82 games and had 10 games in which he scored at least 30 points. Nowitzki became the first Maverick ever to be voted into the All-NBA squads, making the Third Team. In addition, his best friend Nash became a valuable point guard, and with Finley scoring more than ever, pundits were calling this trio the "Big Three" of the Mavericks.
Posting a 53–29 record in the regular season, the Mavericks reached the playoffs
2001 NBA Playoffs
The 2001 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2000–01 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers winning their second consecutive championship by defeating the Eastern Conference champion Philadelphia 76ers...
for the first time since 1990. As the fifth seed, they were paired against the Utah Jazz
Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz is a professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City, Utah. They are currently a part of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
of all-time assist leader John Stockton
John Stockton
John Houston Stockton is a retired American professional basketball player who spent his entire career as a point guard for the Utah Jazz of the NBA from 1984 to 2003. Stockton is regarded as one of the best point guards of all time, holding the NBA records for most career assists and steals by...
and second all-time leading scorer Karl Malone
Karl Malone
Karl Anthony Malone , nicknamed "The Mailman", is a retired American professional basketball power forward who spent the majority of his career with the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association . Malone spent his first 18 seasons with the Jazz and formed a formidable duo with his teammate...
. After losing the first two games, Nowitzki scored 33 points in both games 3 and 4 and helped to tie the series. In Game 5, the Mavericks trailed the entire game until Calvin Booth
Calvin Booth
Calvin Lawrence Booth is an American professional basketball player who is currently a free agent.-College career:...
drained a jump shot which put them ahead 84–83 with 9.8 seconds to go. Jazz players Bryon Russell
Bryon Russell
Bryon Demetrise Russell is an American basketball player. During an NBA career that spanned from 1993 to 2006, he played for the Denver Nuggets, Washington Wizards and Los Angeles Lakers and was a key member of the Utah Jazz, helping them reach back-to-back NBA finals appearances in 1997 and 1998...
and Malone missed last-second shots and the Mavericks won, setting up a meeting with Texas rivals San Antonio Spurs
San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio, Texas. They are part of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ....
of All-Star power forward Tim Duncan
Tim Duncan
Timothy Theodore "Tim" Duncan is an American professional basketball player for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association . The 6-foot 11-inch , 255-pound power forward/center is a four-time NBA champion, two-time NBA MVP, three-time NBA Finals MVP, and NBA Rookie of the Year...
. The Mavericks lost their first three games, and Nowitzki fell ill with flu and later lost a tooth after a collision with Spurs guard Terry Porter
Terry Porter
Terry Porter is an American professional basketball coach and former player in the National Basketball Association . A native of Wisconsin, he played college basketball at the University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point before being drafted 24th by the Portland Trail Blazers in the 1985 NBA Draft...
. After a Game 4 win, Nowitzki scored 42 points and 18 rebounds in Game 5, but could not prevent a deciding 105–87 loss. While Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
pointed out that the Mavericks shot badly during Game 5, Nowitzki was lauded for scoring his playoff career-high 42 points. The German said: "It's a disappointment to end the season on a blowout."
2001–02 season
Prior to the 2001–02 NBA season, Nowitzki signed a six-year, $90 million contract extension, which made him the second highest-paid German athlete after Formula One
Formula One
Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
champion Michael Schumacher
Michael Schumacher
Michael Schumacher is a German Formula One racing driver for the Mercedes GP team. Famous for his eleven-year spell with Ferrari, Schumacher is a seven-time World Champion and is widely regarded as the greatest F1 driver of all time...
. He continued to improve, now averaging 23.4 points, 9.9 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game, was voted into the All-NBA Second Team and into his first All-Star Game. He also had 13 games with at least 30 points and 10 rebounds, third behind Shaquille O'Neal
Shaquille O'Neal
Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal , nicknamed "Shaq" , is a former American professional basketball player. Standing tall and weighing , he was one of the heaviest players ever to play in the NBA...
and Tim Duncan. Powered by new recruit Nick Van Exel
Nick Van Exel
Nickey Maxwell "Nick" Van Exel is a retired American professional basketball player and currently an assistant coach for the Atlanta Hawks...
, who became a high-scoring sixth man
Sixth man
The sixth man in basketball is a player who is not a starter but comes off the bench much more often than other reserves, often being the first player to be substituted in. The sixth man often plays minutes equal to or exceeding some of the starters and posts similar statistics. He is often a...
, the Mavericks "Big Three" convincingly made the playoffs
2002 NBA Playoffs
The 2002 NBA Playoffs were the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2001–02 season. This would be the final postseason that held a best-of-5 first-round series; next year's postseason would see those series expanded to a best-of-7 format...
with a 57–25 record.
The Mavericks swept Kevin Garnett
Kevin Garnett
Kevin Maurice Garnett is an American professional basketball player who currently plays power forward for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association . After a high school basketball career at Farragut Career Academy which included winning a national player of the year award, he...
and the Minnesota Timberwolves
Minnesota Timberwolves
The Minnesota Timberwolves are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . Founded in 1989, the team is currently owned by Glen Taylor...
in the first round of the 2002 NBA Playoffs
2002 NBA Playoffs
The 2002 NBA Playoffs were the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2001–02 season. This would be the final postseason that held a best-of-5 first-round series; next year's postseason would see those series expanded to a best-of-7 format...
3–0: Nowitzki outscored Garnett with 33.3 points per game versus 24.0. In the second round, the Mavericks met the Sacramento Kings
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are a professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California, United States. They are currently members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...
with rival power forward Chris Webber
Chris Webber
Mayce Edward Christopher "Chris" Webber, III , nicknamed C-Webb, is a retired American professional basketball player. He is a five-time NBA All-Star, a former All-NBA First Teamer, a former NBA Rookie of the Year, and a former #1 overall NBA Draftee...
. After splitting the first two games, Kings coach Rick Adelman
Rick Adelman
Richard Leonard "Rick" Adelman is an American former basketball professional player and current basketball coach. He is the head coach of the Minnesota Timberwolves of the NBA. Confirmation of the hiring came from the Timberwolves on September 13, 2011...
changed his defensive scheme: before, Webber had defended Nowitzki one-on-one, but now, the Kings coach ordered his smaller but quicker player Hedo Turkoglu to cover the German. Turkoglu should use his agility to play Nowitzki tightly, and if the taller Maverick tried to post up Turkoglu, Webber would double team
Double team
In basketball, a double team is a defensive alignment in which two defensive players are assigned to guard a single offensive player....
Nowitzki. In Game 3 in Dallas, the Mavericks lost 125–119; Nowitzki scored only 19 points and said: "I simply could not pass Turkoglu, and if I did, I ran into a double team and committed too many turnovers." In Game 4, more frustration awaited the German: the Mavericks gave away a 14-point lead, although the entire Kings starting frontcourt of center Vlade Divac
Vlade Divac
Vlade Divac is a retired Yugoslav and Serbian professional basketball player who spent most of his career in the NBA. At , he played center and was known for his passing skills...
and power forward Chris Webber
Chris Webber
Mayce Edward Christopher "Chris" Webber, III , nicknamed C-Webb, is a retired American professional basketball player. He is a five-time NBA All-Star, a former All-NBA First Teamer, a former NBA Rookie of the Year, and a former #1 overall NBA Draftee...
(both fouled out) and small forward Peja Stojakovic
Peja Stojaković
Predrag Stojaković , also known by his nickname Peja , is a Serbian professional basketball player who last played for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association . Standing at 6 ft 10 , Stojaković plays the small forward position...
(injury) were eliminated in the closing stages of the game. Nowitzki missed two potentially game deciding jump shots, and the Mavericks lost 115–113 at home. In Game 5, the demoralised Texans were no match for the spirited Kings, lost 114–101 and were eliminated again. Among others, nba.com remarked that the Kings defended better than the Mavericks: in those five games, the statisticians counted 115 Sacramento layup
Layup
A layup in basketball is a two-point shot attempt made by leaping from below, laying the ball up near the basket, and using one hand to bounce it off the backboard and into the basket. The motion and one-handed reach distinguish it from a jump shot. The layup is considered the most basic shot in...
s against the Mavericks, meaning the Kings averaged 23 uncontested baskets (i.e. 46 easy points) per game. However, Nowitzki received a consolation award: the Gazzetta dello Sport voted him as "European Basketballer of the Year," his 104 votes lifting him over second-placed Dejan Bodiroga
Dejan Bodiroga
Dejan Bodiroga is a retired Serbian professional basketball player.He is offten considered as one of the best players who did not play in the NBA....
(54) and Stojakovic (50).
2002–03 season
Before the 2002–03 NBA season, Don Nelson and Mark Cuban put more emphasis on defense in the training drills, specialising in a zone defense anchored by prolific shotblockers Raef LaFrentz
Raef LaFrentz
Raef Andrew LaFrentz is a retired American professional basketball power forward and center who played in the NBA from 1998 to 2009. Born and raised in Iowa, LaFrentz attended the University of Kansas and was drafted in 1998 by the Denver Nuggets...
and Shawn Bradley
Shawn Bradley
Shawn Paul Bradley is a retired American and German basketball player who played center for the Philadelphia 76ers, the New Jersey Nets and the Dallas Mavericks in the National Basketball Association. At tall, Bradley was one of the tallest players in NBA history...
. The Mavericks won their first 11 games, and Finley, Nash and Nowitzki were voted "Western Conference Players of the Month" in November 2002. In that season, Nowitzki lifted his averages again, now scoring 25.1 points, 9.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. In addition, the German had 41 double-double games, the seventh highest figure that season. By averaging 25.1, he became the first European to score 2,000 points in a season. As a reward, he was voted into the All-Star game and the All-NBA Second Team again, and was also runner-up in the "German Athlete of the Year" election, only losing to ski jumper Sven Hannawald
Sven Hannawald
Sven Hannawald is a former German ski jumper who competed from the mid 1990s to the mid 2000s. Hannawald won the Four Hills Tournament once. He also won four medals at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, as well as three medals each in the Olympic Winter Games and the FIS Ski-Flying World...
. He led the Mavericks to a franchise-high 60–22 record, which earned them the third seed: as a result, the Mavericks had to play sixth seed Portland Trail Blazers
Portland Trail Blazers
The Portland Trail Blazers, commonly known as the Blazers, are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The Trail Blazers originally played their home games in the...
in the 2003 NBA Playoffs
2003 NBA Playoffs
The 2003 NBA playoffs was the postseason of the National Basketball Association's 2002-03 NBA season. This postseason was notable for being the first time all series were conducted in a best-of-7 format. It was also the only time in playoff history that no team was swept in a first-round series....
. Now playing in a best-of-seven series instead of the former best-of-five, Dallas quickly won the first three games, but then the Mavericks completely lost their rhythm and lost the next three matches. In Game 7, Portland held the game close, but 90 seconds before the end, Nowitzki hit a clutch three point shot, and the game ended 107–95 for the Mavericks. "This was the most important basket of my career," he later said, "I was not prepared to go on vacation that early." He later added in an ESPN interview: "We had to be more physical in the paint and rebound the ball. We worked hard all season to get the home-court advantage and we used that advantage today."
In the next round, the Mavericks met the Kings again. After losing the first game at home by a score of 113–124, Nowitzki (25 points) and veteran sixth man
Sixth man
The sixth man in basketball is a player who is not a starter but comes off the bench much more often than other reserves, often being the first player to be substituted in. The sixth man often plays minutes equal to or exceeding some of the starters and posts similar statistics. He is often a...
Van Exel (36) led Dallas to a spectacular 132–110 Game 2 win in which the Mavericks scored 83 points in the first half. Helped by the fact that Kings star forward Chris Webber injured his meniscus
Meniscus
The meniscus is the curve in the upper surface of a liquid close to the surface of the container or another object, caused by surface tension. It can be either convex or concave. A convex meniscus occurs when the molecules have a stronger attraction to each other than to the material of the...
, Nowitzki and Van Exel led the Mavericks to a 141–137 overtime win in Game 3, before dropping Game 4 99–83, where Nowitzki only scored 11 points and was ejected after angrily kicking over a load of towels. After splitting the next two games, Nowitzki delivered a clutch performance in Game 7, scoring 30 points, grabbing 19 rebounds and playing strong defense, and led the Mavericks to a series-deciding 112–99 win. ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
lauded Nowitzki as "Big D," and after again winning a Game 7, the German added: "We've really learned how to close games out."
In the Western Conference Finals, the Mavericks met the San Antonio Spurs of Tim Duncan again. In Game 1 in San Antonio, Nowitzki scored 38 points on Duncan and led his team to a 113–110 win. In Game 2, Duncan quickly put Nowitzki in foul trouble, and the Spurs equalised the series with a 132–110 win. In Game 3, fate struck as Nowitzki went up for a rebound and Spurs guard Manu Ginóbili
Manu Ginobili
Emanuel David "Manu" Ginóbili is an Argentine professional basketball player. Coming from a family of professional basketball players, he is a member of the Argentine men's national basketball team and the San Antonio Spurs in the National Basketball Association .Ginóbili spent the early part of...
collided with his knee, forcing him out of the series: without their top scorer, the Mavericks still fought valiantly and trailed 3–2, before Spurs guard Steve Kerr
Steve Kerr
Stephen Douglas "Steve" Kerr is a retired American professional basketball player. He shot .454 from three point range over his career and currently holds the record as the most accurate three-point shooter in NBA history...
got hot from three-point range late in Game 6 to help San Antonio clinch the series with a 90–78 victory. Don Nelson later commented: "We were playing so well for so long and the bottom just dropped out...We went cold at the wrong time." Nowitzki took very little consolation in the fact that he again was voted "European Basketballer of the Year" and was named "Best European Basketballer" in a general survey of the NBA general managers.
2003–04 season
In the 2003–04 NBA season, Mark Cuban and Don Nelson decided to add more offensive wing players to their squad. As a result, the Mavericks acquired two All-Star forwards, namely Golden State Warriors
Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in Oakland, California. They are part of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
All-Star forward Antawn Jamison
Antawn Jamison
Antawn Cortez Jamison is an American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association . He currently plays power forward for the Cleveland Cavaliers and was a member of the USA National Team for the 2006 FIBA World Championships...
(along with Danny Fortson
Danny Fortson
Daniel Anthony Fortson is an American former professional basketball player. He played power forward/center in the NBA from 1997 to 2007.-Early life:...
, Jiri Welsch
Jirí Welsch
Jiří Welsch is a Czech professional basketball player with Spirou Basket of the Basketball League Belgium. Welsch has played in the National Basketball Association league in the United States, having been drafted in 2002 by the Philadelphia 76ers.-Early years:Welsch began his professional career...
and Chris Mills
Chris Mills
Christopher Lemonte Mills is a retired American professional basketball player.Chris Mills attended Fairfax High School in Los Angeles, from 1986–1988. At 6'7", he was the starting center for each of his three years playing varsity basketball there. In 1987 and 1988, he was awarded the City 4-A...
, for Van Exel and role players) and Antoine Walker
Antoine Walker
Antoine Devon Walker is an American professional basketball player who most recently played for the Idaho Stampede of the NBA Development League...
(Boston Celtics) who came for center Raef LaFrentz
Raef LaFrentz
Raef Andrew LaFrentz is a retired American professional basketball power forward and center who played in the NBA from 1998 to 2009. Born and raised in Iowa, LaFrentz attended the University of Kansas and was drafted in 1998 by the Denver Nuggets...
. Basketball experts were wary about latter trade, because it sent away the Mavericks starting center; they argued it left a hole in the middle that the aging, injury-prone backup pivot Shawn Bradley could not fill anymore. Unable to trade for a new center, Don Nelson decided to start the prolific rebounder Nowitzki at pivot, put Walker on Nowitzki's usual power forward spot and played Jamison as a high-scoring sixth man
Sixth man
The sixth man in basketball is a player who is not a starter but comes off the bench much more often than other reserves, often being the first player to be substituted in. The sixth man often plays minutes equal to or exceeding some of the starters and posts similar statistics. He is often a...
. To cope with his more physical role, Nowitzki put on 20 lb (9.1 kg) of muscle mass over summer, sacrificed part of his agility, and put more emphasis on defense rather than scoring: as a result, his averages fell for the first time in his career, dropping to 21.8 points, 8.7 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game, but he still led the Mavericks in scoring, rebounding, steals (1.2 spg) and blocks (1.35 bpg). These figures earned him nominations for the All-Star game and the All-NBA Third Team. Compiling a 52–30 record, the Mavericks met their familiar rivals Sacramento Kings again, but were eliminated in just five games.
Franchise player (2004–present)
Before the 2004–05 NBA season, the Mavericks were re-tooled again. Defensive center Erick Dampier
Erick Dampier
Erick Travez Dampier is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Miami Heat. He is a 6 ft 11 in / 265 lb. center.-Career:...
was acquired from the Golden State Warriors
Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in Oakland, California. They are part of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
, but Nowitzki's close friend Steve Nash
Steve Nash
Stephen John "Steve" Nash, OC, OBC is a South African-born Canadian professional basketball player who plays point guard for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association . Nash enjoyed a successful high-school basketball career, and he was eventually given a scholarship by Santa Clara...
left Dallas and returned to the Phoenix Suns
Phoenix Suns
The Phoenix Suns are a professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association and the only team in their division not to be based in California. Their home arena since 1992 has been the US...
as a free agent
Free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player whose contract with a team has expired and who is thus eligible to sign with another club or franchise....
. During the season, long-time head coach Don Nelson resigned, and his assistant Avery Johnson
Avery Johnson
Avery Johnson is a former American professional basketball player and current head coach of the National Basketball Association team New Jersey Nets. He has also coached the Dallas Mavericks, leading them to their first NBA Finals appearance and four consecutive 50+ win seasons...
took on coaching duties. In the midst of these changes, Nowitzki stepped up his game and averaged 26.1 points a game (a career-high) 9.7 rebounds, and his 1.5 blocks and 3.1 assists were also career numbers. In addition, Nowitzki scored at least 10 points in every game and was only one of four players who registered at least 1.2 steals and 1.2 blocks per game. This was also his second 2,000 point season, his 26.1 points scoring average set a new record by a European player. On December 2, 2004, Nowitzki scored 53 points in an overtime win against the Houston Rockets
Houston Rockets
The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston, Texas. The team plays in the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was established in 1967, and played in San Diego, California for four years, before being...
, a career best. As a reward, Nowitzki was voted to the All-NBA First Team for the first time. He also placed third in the league's MVP voting, behind Nash and Shaquille O'Neal
Shaquille O'Neal
Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal , nicknamed "Shaq" , is a former American professional basketball player. Standing tall and weighing , he was one of the heaviest players ever to play in the NBA...
. By being elected to the All-NBA First Team, Nowitzki became the first player who did not attend a United States high school or college to be on the All-NBA First Team.
However, the Mavericks had a subpar 2005 NBA Playoffs
2005 NBA Playoffs
The 2005 NBA Playoffs was the postseason of the National Basketball Association's 2004–05 season.The San Antonio Spurs, the number two ranked team in the Western Conference, won the 2005 NBA Playoffs by defeating the defending champions, the Detroit Pistons, 4-3 in the NBA Finals...
campaign. In the first round, Dallas met the Houston Rockets
Houston Rockets
The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston, Texas. The team plays in the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was established in 1967, and played in San Diego, California for four years, before being...
of scoring champion Tracy McGrady
Tracy McGrady
Tracy Lamar McGrady, Jr., is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Detroit Pistons.Entering the league after graduating from high school, McGrady eventually became a seven-time All-Star. He led the league in scoring in 2003 and 2004. He has also played for the Toronto...
and 7–6 center Yao Ming
Yao Ming
Yao Ming is a retired Chinese professional basketball player who last played for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association...
, and Nowitzki was expected to average high figures against unheralded forward Ryan Bowen
Ryan Bowen
Ryan Cleo Bowen is an American former professional basketball player who last played for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the NBA. He was a 6'9", power forward.-Career:...
: nba.com described Bowen as "overmatched" versus the German. Instead, Bowen limited Nowitzki to just 21 points in Game 1 and 26 points in Game 2, where the latter only hit 8 of 26 shots from the field. The Rockets took a 2–0 series lead before the Mavericks won three games in a row. After losing Game 6, Dallas won Game 7 convincingly and won the series even though Nowitzki struggled with his shooting. In the Western Conference Semifinals, the Mavericks met the Phoenix Suns, the new club of Nash. They split the first four games, before the Suns won the last two games. In Game 6, which the Mavericks lost in overtime, Nowitzki was again not at his best: he scored 28 points, but also sank only 9 of his 25 field goal attempts; in addition, he was visibly irritated, repeatedly shouting at his team mates and missing all his five shots in overtime.
2005–06 season
Prior to the 2005–06 NBA season, veteran Mavericks captain Michael Finley
Michael Finley
Michael Howard Finley is a retired American professional basketball player. He last played for the Boston Celtics of the NBA.-High school career:...
was waived over the summer, and now Nowitzki was the last player remaining from the Mavericks' "Big Three" of Nash, Finley, and himself. Nowitzki blossomed as the sole franchise player, averaging 26.6 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 2.8 assists. Not only was this his third 2,000 point season, but his scoring average of 26.6 points was highest ever by a European. He improved his shooting percentage, setting personal season records in field goals
Field goal percentage
Field goal percentage in basketball is the ratio of field goals made to field goals attempted. Its abbreviation is FG%. Three-point field goals are included in this percentage. Instead of using scales of 0 to 100%, the scale .000 to 1.000 is commonly used. A higher field goal percentage denotes...
(48.0%), three-point shots (40.6%) and free throw
Free throw
In basketball, free throws or foul shots are unopposed attempts to score points from a restricted area on the court , and are generally awarded after a foul on the shooter by the opposing team...
s (90.1%). During the 2006 All-Star Weekend in Houston
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
, Nowitzki scored 18 points to defeat Seattle SuperSonics
Seattle SuperSonics
The Seattle SuperSonics were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle, Washington that played in the Pacific and Northwest Divisions of the National Basketball Association from 1967 until 2008. Following the 2007–08 season, the team relocated to Oklahoma City, and now plays as...
guard Ray Allen
Ray Allen
Walter Ray Allen is an American professional basketball player who is currently playing for the Boston Celtics in the National Basketball Association. He has played professionally for the Milwaukee Bucks, Seattle SuperSonics, and the Boston Celtics; and collegiately for the University of...
and Washington Wizards
Washington Wizards
The Washington Wizards are a professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C., previously known as Washington Bullets. They play in the National Basketball Association .-Early years:...
guard Gilbert Arenas
Gilbert Arenas
Gilbert Jay Arenas, Jr. is an American professional basketball player for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association . He plays as a point guard and shooting guard....
in the Three-Point Shootout contest.
Nowitzki paced the Mavericks to a 60-win season. The team finished with the third-best record in the league, behind the defending champion San Antonio Spurs
San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio, Texas. They are part of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ....
and defending Eastern Conference champion Detroit Pistons
Detroit Pistons
The Detroit Pistons are a franchise of the National Basketball Association based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The team's home arena is The Palace of Auburn Hills. It was originally founded in Fort Wayne, Indiana as the Fort Wayne Pistons as a member of the National Basketball League in 1941, where...
. As in the 2004–05 season, he finished third in the league's MVP voting, this time behind Nash and LeBron James
LeBron James
LeBron Raymone James is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association . Nicknamed "King James", he was a three-time "Mr. Basketball" of Ohio in high school, and was highly promoted in the national media as a future NBA superstar while a...
. He was again elected to the first team All-NBA squad. Nowitzki confirmed his superstar status during the playoffs
2005 NBA Playoffs
The 2005 NBA Playoffs was the postseason of the National Basketball Association's 2004–05 season.The San Antonio Spurs, the number two ranked team in the Western Conference, won the 2005 NBA Playoffs by defeating the defending champions, the Detroit Pistons, 4-3 in the NBA Finals...
as he averaged 27.0 points, 11.7 rebounds, and 2.9 assists. The Mavericks swept the Memphis Grizzlies
Memphis Grizzlies
The Memphis Grizzlies are a professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee, USA. The team is part of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . Along with the Toronto Raptors, the Grizzlies were established in 1995 as part of the NBA's...
with 4–0, with Nowitzki's most spectacular play being a clutch three-point shot in the closing seconds of Game 3 which tied the game and forced overtime. In the Western Conference Semifinals, the Mavericks played against the San Antonio Spurs again. After splitting the first six games, the Mavericks took a 20-point lead in Game 7 before Spur Manu Ginóbili
Manu Ginobili
Emanuel David "Manu" Ginóbili is an Argentine professional basketball player. Coming from a family of professional basketball players, he is a member of the Argentine men's national basketball team and the San Antonio Spurs in the National Basketball Association .Ginóbili spent the early part of...
broke a tie at 101 by hitting a clutch 3 with 30 seconds left. On the next play, Nowitzki completed a three-point play, which tied the game at 104. In the end, the Mavericks won 119–111, and Nowitzki ended the game with 37 points and 15 rebounds. Nowitzki commented: "I don't know how the ball went in. Manu hit my hand. It was a lucky bounce."
The Mavericks advanced to the Western Conference Finals, where they would again meet Nash and the Phoenix Suns. Nowitzki scored 50 points to lead the Mavericks to a victory in the crucial Game 5 with the series tied 2–2; the Mavericks would go on to win in six games and face the Miami Heat
Miami Heat
The Miami Heat is a professional basketball team based in Miami, Florida, United States. The team is a member of the Southeast Division in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association . They play their home games at American Airlines Arena in Downtown Miami...
in the 2006 NBA Finals
2006 NBA Finals
The 2006 NBA Finals was the championship series of the 2005–06 National Basketball Association season. The Miami Heat won the championship in six games over the Dallas Mavericks, winning the final game at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, and becoming the third team to win a championship...
. A content Nowitzki commented: "We've been a good road team all season long, we believed in each other. We went through some ups and downs this season, but the playoffs is all about showing heart and playing together." Of Nowitzki's performance, ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
columnist Bill Simmons
Bill Simmons
William J. "Bill" Simmons III is a sports columnist, author, and podcaster. He currently writes columns and hosts podcasts for Grantland.com, which is affiliated with ESPN.com. He is a former writer for ESPN The Magazine and Jimmy Kimmel Live!...
would remark, "Dirk is playing at a higher level than any forward since Bird
Larry Bird
Larry Joe Bird is a former American NBA basketball player and coach. Drafted into the NBA sixth overall by the Boston Celtics in 1978, Bird started at small forward and power forward for thirteen seasons, spearheading one of the NBA's most formidable frontcourts that included center Robert Parish...
." The Mavericks took an early 2–0 lead, but then gave away a late 15-point lead in a Game 3 loss and finally fell to a scoring onslaught by Heat Finals MVP Dwyane Wade
Dwyane Wade
Dwyane Tyrone Wade, Jr. nicknamed Flash or D-Wade, is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat. Awarded 2006 Sportsman of the Year by Sports Illustrated, Wade has established himself as one of the most well-known and popular players in the league...
: Wade scored at least 36 points in the next four games, which the Heat all won. Nowitzki only made 20 of his last 55 shots in the final 3 games as the Mavericks lost the Finals series 4–2 to the Heat. The German was criticized by ESPN as "clearly... not as his best this series" and remarked: "That was a tough loss (in Game 3) and that really changed the whole momentum of the series... After that, they got confidence. They played a lot better afterwards."
2006–07 season
The 2006–07 season was the year Nowitzki was named the league's Most Valuable Player. He shot a career-best 50.2% from the field, and recorded averages of 24.6 points, 8.9 rebounds, and 3.4 assists and led the Mavericks to a franchise-high 67 wins, which meant Dallas earned the first seed of the 2007 NBA Playoffs
2007 NBA Playoffs
The 2007 NBA Playoffs was the postseason to the National Basketball Association's 2006–2007 season.There were four rounds of postseason action, all of them in a best-of-seven format, with teams seeded on a bracket. The team with the better record wasn't necessarily the basis of seeding teams in...
. Nowitzki was touted as the overwhelming favorite for the Most Valuable Player award, and was expected to lead the Mavericks to an easy win against the eighth seed Golden State Warriors
Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in Oakland, California. They are part of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
, despite the Warriors having won all three regular season meetings against Dallas. However, the Mavericks ended up losing to the Warriors in six games, marking the first time a #8 seed has beaten the #1 in a best of seven series in NBA history. In the clinching Game 6, Nowitzki shot just 2–13 from the field for only eight points. Defended by Stephen Jackson
Stephen Jackson
Stephen Jesse Jackson is an American professional basketball player for the NBA's Milwaukee Bucks. Jackson is a 6'8" guard-forward.-Early life, high school, and college:Jackson was born in Houston and grew up in Port Arthur, Texas...
, Nowitzki averaged nearly five points less than his regular season average in that series and shot only 38.3% from the field as compared to 50.2% during the regular season. He described this loss as a low point in his career: "This series, I couldn't put my stamp on it the way I wanted to. That's why I'm very disappointed." In spite of this historic playoffs loss, Nowitzki was named the NBA's regular season Most Valuable Player and beat his friend and back-to-back NBA MVP Nash with more than 100 votes. He also became the first European-born player in NBA history to receive the honor.
2007–08 season
The 2007–08 campaign saw another first-round playoffs exit for Nowitzki and his Mavericks. Despite a mid-season blockbuster trade that sent veteran NBA All-Star Jason Kidd
Jason Kidd
Jason Frederick Kidd is an American professional basketball point guard who plays for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association. Raised in Oakland, California, Kidd played college basketball at the University of California, Berkeley and was drafted second overall by the Dallas...
to Dallas, the Mavericks could only finish seventh in a highly competitive Western Conference. Nowitzki averaged 23.6 points, 8.6 rebounds, and a career-high 3.5 assists for the season. In the playoffs
2008 NBA Playoffs
The 2008 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2007–08 season which ended with the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics defeating the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers 4–2....
, they faced rising star Chris Paul
Chris Paul
Christopher Emmanuel Paul is an American professional basketball point guard for the New Orleans Hornets.Paul was born and raised in North Carolina. Despite only playing two varsity basketball seasons in high school, he was a McDonald's All-American and accepted a scholarship with nearby Wake...
's New Orleans Hornets, and were eliminated in five games. The few positive highlights that season for the German were his first career triple-double against the Milwaukee Bucks
Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks are a professional basketball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. They are part of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1968 as an expansion team, and currently plays at the Bradley Center....
on February 6, 2008, with 29 points, 10 rebounds, and a career-high 12 assists, and on March 8, 2008 (34 points against the New Jersey Nets
New Jersey Nets
The New Jersey Nets are a professional basketball team based in Newark, New Jersey. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association...
), when he surpassed Rolando Blackman
Rolando Blackman
Rolando Antonio Blackman is a retired professional basketball player. He was an All-Star who spent most of his career with the Dallas Mavericks...
with his 16,644th point to become the Mavericks' all-time career points leader.
2008–09 season
The 2008–09 NBA season
2008–09 NBA season
The 2008–09 NBA season was the 63rd season of the National Basketball Association . The 1,230-game regular season began on Tuesday, October 28, 2008, and ended on Wednesday, April 15, 2009...
saw Nowitzki finish with averages of 25.9 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 2.4 assists. He was fourth in the league in scoring, and garnered his fourth All-NBA First Team
All-NBA Team
The All-NBA Team is an annual National Basketball Association honor bestowed on the best players in the league following every NBA season. The voting is conducted by a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada. The team has been selected in every season of the...
selection. He also made the 2009 All-Star game, his eighth appearance. Nowitzki led Dallas to a tight finish towards the playoffs
2009 NBA Playoffs
The 2009 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2008–09 season. The playoffs started on April 18, 2009 with ABC, ESPN, TNT, and NBA TV broadcasting the games in the United States...
, finishing 50–32 for the season (6th in the West), after a slow 2–7 start. In the playoffs, the German led Dallas to an upset win over long-time rival San Antonio (3rd seed), winning the first round series 4–1. The Mavericks, however, fell short against the Denver Nuggets
Denver Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets are a professional basketball team based in Denver, Colorado. They play in the National Basketball Association . They were founded as the Denver Rockets in 1967 as a charter franchise of the American Basketball Association, and became one of that league's more successful teams...
4–1 in the second round, with Nowitzki averaging 34.4 points, 11.6 rebounds, and 4 assists in the series.
2009–10 season
The Mavericks finished the 2009–10 NBA season
2009–10 NBA season
The 2009–10 NBA season was the 64th season of the National Basketball Association . The 1,230-game regular season began on Tuesday, October 27, 2009, and ended on Wednesday, April 14, 2010....
as the second seed for the playoffs
2010 NBA Playoffs
The 2010 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2009–10 season. The playoffs started on April 17, 2010 with ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, TNT, and NBA TV broadcasting the games in the United States...
—it was their 10th consecutive season with at least 50 regular season wins. Notable additions to the squad were multiple All-Stars Shawn Marion
Shawn Marion
Shawn Dwayne Marion is an American professional basketball player currently with the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association. Born in Waukegan, Illinois, Marion attended high school in Clarksville, Tennessee. Before transferring to the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, Marion...
and Caron Butler
Caron Butler
James Caron Butler, widely known as Caron Butler , is an American professional basketball player who most recently played at small forward for the NBA's Dallas Mavericks.-Early life:...
, with the latter coming in the latter half of the season. On January 13, 2010, Nowitzki became the 34th player in NBA history—and the first European—to hit the 20,000 point milestone, while ending the regular season with averages of 25 points, 7.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1 block. He was selected to the 2010 All-Star game, his ninth appearance. The Mavericks faced off against San Antonio once more in the first round of the playoffs, but for the third time in four seasons, they failed to progress to the next round. Nowitzki was the only consistent player throughout the series for the Mavericks, averaging 26.7 points per outing, while the likes of Jason Terry, second leading scorer for the Mavericks averaged only 12.7 points per game compared to his 16.6 regular season. Despite being a free agent, on July 5, 2010 Nowitzki agreed to remain with Dallas by re-signing to a four-year, $80 million deal.
2010–11 season
The most significant changes to the 2010–11
2010–11 NBA season
The 2010–11 NBA season was the 65th season of the National Basketball Association . The 2011 NBA All-Star Game was played on February 20, 2011 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Miami Heat in six games, 4 games to 2, to win their first NBA title, and...
team roster was the arrival of Tyson Chandler
Tyson Chandler
Tyson Cleotis Chandler is an American professional basketball center who most recently played for the Dallas Mavericks of the NBA. He was also a member of the United States men's national basketball team.-High school:...
via a trade. Nowitzki was injured in the middle of the season, during which the Mavericks would record their worst losing streak in over a decade. Nowitzki finished the regular season with averages of 23 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists. Despite missing 9 games, Nowitzki was selected to the 2011 All-Star game, his tenth appearance. The Mavericks concluded the regular season with 57 wins, seeding third behind the Spurs and the Lakers
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. They play in the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
for the 2011 NBA Playoffs
2011 NBA Playoffs
The 2011 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2010–11 season. Eight teams from each of the league's two conferences qualified for the playoffs, all seeded 1 to 8 in a tournament bracket, with all rounds in a best-of-seven format. The 2011 NBA Playoffs began on...
. During the playoffs, despite their seeding, many predicted that Dallas would lose in the first round to Portland
Portland Trail Blazers
The Portland Trail Blazers, commonly known as the Blazers, are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The Trail Blazers originally played their home games in the...
, and after blowing a 23-point third-quarter lead in Game 4 to even the series at 2, the Mavericks appeared ready for another postseason collapse. However, Dallas won the final two games to advance, and then swept Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bean Bryant is an American professional basketball player who plays shooting guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . Bryant enjoyed a successful high school basketball career at Lower Merion High School, where he was recognized as the top high school...
, Pau Gasol
Pau Gasol
Pau Gasol Sáez is a Spanish professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . He was born to Marisa Sáez and Agustí Gasol, and he spent his childhood in Spain...
, and the two-time defending champion Lakers in the semifinals in Phil Jackson
Phil Jackson
Philip Douglas "Phil" Jackson is a retired American professional basketball coach and player. Jackson is widely considered one of the greatest coaches in the history of the National Basketball Association . His reputation was established as head coach of the Chicago Bulls from 1989 through 1998;...
's final year as an NBA coach. In the Conference Finals, they faced the Oklahoma City Thunder
Oklahoma City Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder are a professional basketball franchise based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ; their home court is at Chesapeake Energy Arena....
and their All-NBA duo of Kevin Durant
Kevin Durant
Kevin Wayne Durant is an American professional basketball player for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the National Basketball Association . A 6'9" small forward/shooting guard who is also capable of playing power forward, Durant was the consensus 2007 National College Player of the Year and the...
and Russell Westbrook
Russell Westbrook
Russell Westbrook is an American professional basketball player currently playing for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the NBA. He was drafted by the Thunder's former incarnation, the Seattle SuperSonics, which relocated from Seattle, Washington to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma...
. In Game 1, Nowitzki scored 48 points while shooting 12/15 from the field while setting an NBA record of 24 consecutive free throws made in a game as well as most free throws in a game without a miss. In the pivotal Game 4, with Dallas holding a 2–1 series lead, Nowitzki scored 40 points to rally his team from a 99–84 deficit in the 4th quarter and eventually win 112–105 in overtime to take a commanding 3–1 series lead. Dallas overcame another fourth-quarter deficit in Game 5 to win the series and the Western Conference Championship. In the Finals
2011 NBA Finals
The 2011 NBA Finals was the championship series of the 2010–11 season of the National Basketball Association and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Western Conference champion Dallas Mavericks defeated the Eastern Conference champion Miami Heat, 4–2, to win their first NBA title...
, Dallas once again faced Dwyane Wade's Miami Heat, which had acquired All-Stars LeBron James
LeBron James
LeBron Raymone James is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association . Nicknamed "King James", he was a three-time "Mr. Basketball" of Ohio in high school, and was highly promoted in the national media as a future NBA superstar while a...
and Chris Bosh
Chris Bosh
Christopher Wesson Bosh is an American professional basketball player who plays power forward for the Miami Heat in the National Basketball Association ....
before the season began. During the Game 1 loss in Miami, Nowitzki tore a tendon in his left middle finger; however, MRIs were negative, and Nowitzki vowed that the injury would not be a factor. In Game 2, Nowitzki led a Dallas rally from a 88–73 4th quarter deficit, capped by a driving left-handed layup over Bosh to tie the series at 1. After Nowitzki missed a potential game-tying shot at the end of Game 3, Miami took a 2–1 series lead. Despite carrying a 101° fever in Game 4, Nowitzki scored the winning basket to tie the series yet again at 2, evoking comparisons of Michael Jordan
Michael Jordan
Michael Jeffrey Jordan is a former American professional basketball player, active entrepreneur, and majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats...
's flu-ridden performance against Utah in the 1997 NBA Finals
1997 NBA Finals
The 1997 NBA Finals was the concluding series of the 1997 NBA Playoffs that determined the champion of the 1996–97 NBA season. The Utah Jazz of the Western Conference took on the Chicago Bulls of the Eastern Conference for the title, with the Bulls holding home court advantage...
. Dallas went on to win the next two games, with Nowitzki scoring 10 fourth-quarter points in the series-clinching game in Miami, bringing the first championship to the franchise. In the series, Nowitzki scored 62 points total in the six fourth quarters, equaling the combined fourth quarter output of James and Wade. He was named Finals MVP, joining a distinguished list of 10 other players to have been an NBA champion, NBA Finals MVP, NBA regular season MVP, and a 10-time All-Star. For the whole 2011 playoffs, Nowitzki averaged 27.7 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 2.5 assists in 21 games.
International career
Nowitzki has been playing for the German national basketball teamGermany national basketball team
The German national basketball team for men is the basketball side that represents Germany in international competitions. Their biggest successes are the victory in the European Championship of 1993 at home in Germany, the silver medal in the 2005 European Championships and the bronze medal in the...
since the 1999 FIBA European championships
EuroBasket 1999
-Group B:-Group C:-Group D:-Second round:- Group E :- Group F :-Championship bracket:-5th place bracket:- Quarterfinals :-Classification rounds:- Semifinals :- Third place game:- Final :...
. In his debut tournament, the 21-year old rookie emerged as the main German scorer, but Germany finished seventh and failed to qualify for the 2000 Olympic Games
Basketball at the 2000 Summer Olympics
-Group B:-Championship bracket:-Classification matches:-Preliminary round:The four best teams from each group advanced to the quarterfinal round.-Group A:-Group B:-Championship bracket:...
. In the 2001 FIBA European Championships
EuroBasket 2001
The EuroBasket 2001 was the 32nd EuroBasket, the biennial regional basketball championship contested by European nations and held by FIBA Europe. The tournament, which was hosted by Turkey, began on 31 August 2001 and concluded with the final on 9 September 2001. Yugoslavia won the gold medal,...
, Nowitzki was top scorer with 28.7 points per game, and narrowly lost the MVP vote to Serbian player Peja Stojaković
Peja Stojaković
Predrag Stojaković , also known by his nickname Peja , is a Serbian professional basketball player who last played for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association . Standing at 6 ft 10 , Stojaković plays the small forward position...
. Germany reached the semi-finals and were close to beating host nation Turkey
Turkey national basketball team
The Turkish national basketball team is the basketball section that represents Turkey in international competitions. The team is nicknamed "12 Dev Adam" ....
, but down by three, Hedo Turkoglu hit a three-point buzzer beater
Buzzer beater
In basketball, a buzzer beater is a shot taken just before the game clock of a period expires, when the buzzer sounds. The term is normally reserved for baskets that win or tie the game, but also refers to shots that beat an end-of-quarter or halftime buzzer...
, and the Turks eventually won in overtime. Germany then lost 99–90 against Spain
Spain national basketball team
The Spanish national basketball team is the basketball team representing Spain in international competitions, organized and run by the Spanish Basketball Federation...
, and did not win a medal. However, with averages of 28.7 points and 9.1 rebounds, Nowitzki led the tournament in both statistics, and was voted to the All-Star team. Back home, the German basketball team attracted up to 3.7 million television viewers, a German basketball record at the time.
Nowitzki finally earned his first medal when he led Germany to a bronze medal in the 2002 World Championships
2002 FIBA World Championship
The 2002 FIBA World Championship was an international basketball tournament held by the International Basketball Federation in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA from August 29 to September 8, 2002.-Venues:-Squads:...
. In the quarter-finals against the Pau Gasol
Pau Gasol
Pau Gasol Sáez is a Spanish professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . He was born to Marisa Sáez and Agustí Gasol, and he spent his childhood in Spain...
-led Spain, Spain led 52–46 after three quarters, but then Nowitzki scored 10 points in the last quarter and led Germany to a 70–62 win. In the semi-finals, his team played against the Argentinian
Argentina national basketball team
The Argentina national basketball team represents Argentina in basketball international competitions, and is controlled by the Argentine Basketball Federation....
squad led by Manu Ginóbili
Manu Ginobili
Emanuel David "Manu" Ginóbili is an Argentine professional basketball player. Coming from a family of professional basketball players, he is a member of the Argentine men's national basketball team and the San Antonio Spurs in the National Basketball Association .Ginóbili spent the early part of...
, but despite leading 74–69 four minutes from the end and despite Argentina losing Ginobili to a foot injury, the South Americans won 86–80. However, the Germans won 117–94 against New Zealand
New Zealand national basketball team
The New Zealand national basketball team represents New Zealand in international basketball competitions. It is nicknamed the Tall Blacks, derived from the name of New Zealand's Rugby union team, the All Blacks.-History:...
in the consolation finals and won bronze, and tournament top scorer Nowitzki (24.0 ppg) was elected MVP. Back in Germany, over 4 million television viewers followed the games, an all-time record in German basketball history.
The 2003 FIBA European Championships
Eurobasket 2003
-5th to 8th place:-Awards:-All-Tournament Team : Tony Parker Šarūnas Jasikevičius Saulius Štombergas Andrei Kirilenko Pau Gasol-Top scorers :# Pau Gasol 25.8# Andrei Kirilenko 23.1# Dirk Nowitzki 22.5# Mehmet Okur 18.7...
proved to be a major disappointment for Nowitzki and his German squad. In a preparation game, he suffered a foot injury after a collision with French player Florent Pietrus
Florent Pietrus
Florent Piétrus is a French professional basketball player. His younger brother Mickaël plays for the Phoenix Suns.-Pro career:...
; as a result, Nowitzki played inconsistently and was also often target of hard fouls. In the decisive second round match against Italy
Italy national basketball team
The Italian national basketball team is the national basketball team representing Italy. It is administrated by the Federazione Italiana Pallacanestro ....
(only the winner was allowed to play the medal round), Germany lost 86–84, finished ninth and did not qualify for the 2004 Olympic Games
Basketball at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Basketball at the 2004 Summer Olympics took place at the Helliniko Olympic Indoor Arena in Athens, Greece for the preliminary rounds, with the latter stages being held in the Olympic Indoor Hall at the Athens Olympic Sports Complex....
. Nowitzki scored 22.5 points per game (third overall), but in general seemed to lack focus and dominance due to his injury.
In the 2005 FIBA European Championships
Eurobasket 2005
The EuroBasket 2005 was held in Serbia and Montenegro between 16 September and 25 September 2005. Greece won the gold medal by defeating Germany, while France won the bronze medal over Spain...
, Nowitzki came back strong. He surprisingly led a depleted German squad into the Finals, beating title favorites Slovenia
Slovenia national basketball team
The Slovenian National Basketball Team is a team that is selected by the Basketball Federation of Slovenia to compete in major international basketball events in representation of Slovenia....
in the quarter-finals and Spain in the semi-finals on the way. Eurobasket pundits praised Nowitzki in both matches: against Slovenia (76–62), the forward scored a game high 22 points and commented: "The Slovenians underestimated us. They said we were the team they wanted and that was wrong, you shouldn't do that in the quarter-finals." Against Spain (74–73), Nowitzki scored a game-high 27 points and scored the decisive basket: down by one and with only a few seconds to go, he drove on Spanish forward Jorge Garbajosa
Jorge Garbajosa
Jorge Garbajosa Chaparro, Jr., nicknamed "Garbo" , is a Spanish professional basketball player. At 2.07 m , he plays both power forward and small forward.-Pro career:*1994-97 Taugres*1997-00 TAU Cerámica...
, and hit a baseline jump shot over Garbajosa's outstretched arms with 3.9 seconds to go. The German later commented: "It was indescribable. Garbajosa kind of pushed me towards the baseline so I just went with it." Despite losing the Finals 78–62 to the Greeks
Greece national basketball team
The Greece national basketball team is the representative for Greece in international men's basketball competitions, organized and run by the Hellenic Basketball Federation. Traditionally, Greece is considered among the world's top basketball powers; they were runners-up in the 2006 FIBA World...
, Nowitzki was the tournament's leading scorer (26.7 ppg) and second-leading rebounder (10.8 rpg) and shot blocker (1.8 bpg), and was voted Most Valuable Player of the tournament. When he was subbed out towards the end of the final, Nowitzki received standing ovation from the crowd, which he later recalled as "one of the best moments of [his] career". In the 2006 FIBA World Championship
2006 FIBA World Championship
The 2006 FIBA World Championship was an international basketball competition hosted by Japan from August 19 to September 3, 2006. It was co-organised by the International Basketball Federation , Japan Basketball Association and the 2006 Organizing Committee...
s, Nowitzki led the German team to an eighth place and commented: "It's tough luck. But overall, finishing eighth in the world is not bad."
In the 2007 FIBA European Championships
Eurobasket 2007
-Group B:-Group C:-Group D:-Second round:- Group E :- Group F :-Championship bracket:- Quarterfinals :-Classification rounds:- Semifinals :- Third place game:- Final :...
, in which the top three teams automatically qualified for the 2008 Olympics
Basketball at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Basketball contests at the 2008 Olympic Games were held from August 9, 2008 to August 24, 2008. Competitions were held at the Wukesong Indoor Stadium in Beijing, China...
, Nowitzki led Germany to a fifth place. He was the leading scorer with 24.0 points per game. The fifth place meant that Germany fell short of direct qualification, but was allowed to participate in the 2008 Olympic Qualifying Tournament. Nowitzki led Germany into a decisive match against Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico national basketball team
The Puerto Rico men's national basketball team represents Puerto Rico in international basketball competitions such as the Olympics, the World Championship, and the Americas Championship...
for the last remaining slot. In that crucial match, he scored a game-high 32 points and was vital for the 96–82 win which sent the German basketball team to their first Olympics since the 1992 Summer Olympics
Basketball at the 1992 Summer Olympics
The Basketball games of the 1992 Summer Olympics were played at the Pavelló Olímpic de Badalona. 12 men's teams and 8 women's teams participated in the tournament....
. Nowitzki was chosen to be the flag bearer
2008 Summer Olympics national flag bearers
During the Parade of Nations portion of the 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, athletes from each country participating in the Olympics paraded in the arena, preceded by their flag...
for the German Olympic Team at the Opening Ceremony
2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony
The 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony was held at the Beijing National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest. It began at 8:00 pm China Standard Time on August 8, 2008, as 8 is considered to be a lucky number. The number 8 is associated with prosperity and confidence in Chinese culture...
for the 2008 Olympics. Nowitzki led the German team to a tenth place finish, and averaged 17.0 points, and 7.6 rebounds for the tournament. In 2009, Nowitzki skipped the 2009 FIBA European Championships
EuroBasket 2009
The EuroBasket 2009 was the 36th EuroBasket, the biennial regional basketball championship contested by European nations and held by FIBA Europe. The tournament, which was hosted by Poland, began on 7 September 2009 and concluded with the final on 20 September 2009...
. In July 2010 he said that he would skip the 2010 FIBA World Championship
2010 FIBA World Championship
The 2010 FIBA World Championship, hosted by Turkey, was the international basketball competition contested by the men's national teams. The tournament ran from August 28 to September 12, 2010. It was co-organized by the International Basketball Federation , Turkish Basketball Federation and the...
.
In the summer of 2011 Nowitzki, together with Chris Kaman
Chris Kaman
Christopher Zane Kaman is an American-German basketball player for the NBA's Los Angeles Clippers. Kaman stands 7'0" and weighs 265 pounds...
, played in the EuroBasket 2011
Eurobasket 2011
EuroBasket 2011 was the 37th men's European Basketball Championship, held by FIBA Europe. The competition was hosted by Lithuania. This was the second time Eurobasket had been held in Lithuania, the country having also hosted the 1939 championship. FIBA Europe asserted that Lithuania managed to...
to help his team qualify for the 2012 Summer Olympics
2012 Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the "London 2012 Olympic Games", are scheduled to take place in London, England, United Kingdom from 27 July to 12 August 2012...
. This mission failed when the German team ended the tournament in ninth place.
Player profile
Point forward
Point forward is an unofficial playing position in basketball for those who share the attributes of both a point guard and a forward.A point forward is usually described as a forward who possesses the ball handling skills and court vision to bring the ball up the court and to initiate the team's...
throughout his career. Nowitzki hits 88% of his free throws, hits nearly 50% of his field goal attempts and 40% of his three-point shots, and won the 2006 NBA All-Star Three-Point Shootout competition. In 2006–07 Nowitzki became only the fifth member of the NBA's 50–40–90 Club for players who shot 50% or better from the field, 40% or better on three-pointers, and 90% or better on free-throws in a single season while achieving the NBA league minimum number of makes in each category.
Throughout Nowitzki's career, he has responded to the increased pressure of the playoffs by increasing his productivity. In the regular season he averages 23 points, 8.4 rebounds. In the playoffs he averages 25.9 points and 10.4 rebounds, which only Hakeem Olajuwon
Hakeem Olajuwon
Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon is a retired Nigerian-American professional basketball player. From 1984 to 2002, he played the center position in the National Basketball Association for the Houston Rockets and Toronto Raptors. He led the Rockets to back-to-back NBA championships in 1994 and 1995. In 2008,...
, Bob Pettit
Bob Pettit
Robert Lee "Bob" Pettit Jr. is a retired American professional basketball player. He played 11 seasons in the NBA, all with the Milwaukee/St. Louis Hawks . He was the first recipient of the NBA's Most Valuable Player Award. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1970...
and Elgin Baylor
Elgin Baylor
Elgin Gay Baylor is a retired Hall of Fame American basketball player and former NBA general manager who played 13 seasons as a forward for the NBA's Minneapolis Lakers/Los Angeles Lakers....
have managed to do. In the most pressure packed games, such as playoff elimination games he averages 28.4 points, 12.2 rebounds. He has had 13 elimination games where he scored 30 or more points, with only Jerry West
Jerry West
Jerry Alan West is a retired American basketball player who played his entire professional career for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . His nicknames include "Mr...
having more at 14. Of the top 100 elimination game performances in the last 20 years, Nowitzki has had the best performances in 8 of them, more than any other player in the NBA in that same time frame.
His shooting accuracy combined with his long seven-foot frame and unique shooting mechanics, such as having a release point above his head, makes contesting his jump shots incredibly difficult. Additionally, he can put the ball down and drive with it from the perimeter, like few have been able to do with his size. NBA.com lauds his versatility by stating: "The 7–0 forward who at times mans the pivot can strike fear in an opponent when he corrals a rebound and leads the break or prepares to launch a three-point bomb." Charles Barkley
Charles Barkley
Charles Wade Barkley is a former American professional basketball player. Nicknamed "Sir Charles" and "The Round Mound of Rebound", Barkley established himself as one of the National Basketball Association's most dominating power forwards...
says the best way to guard Nowitzki is to "get a cigarette and a blindfold". When defenses guard Nowitzki with one of their biggest men, who is then pulled out to the perimeter, the net effect is that while Nowitzki's own statistics are actually compromised by being out of position to offensively rebound or make an easy close-range basket, the rest of the team becomes more offensively potent with the defense having to be spread across the floor. Often, this creates player mismatches that Nowitzki's teammates can exploit.
Some critics have alleged Nowitzki's defense is a weakness, as he averages just over one block per game and never made an All-Defense Team. However, playing more around the perimeter takes him out of position where a typical power forward would be detracts from his overall defensive stats. Despite the claims of lack of defense, he is ranked 8th in active players for defensive win shares, placing him higher than Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bean Bryant is an American professional basketball player who plays shooting guard for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association . Bryant enjoyed a successful high school basketball career at Lower Merion High School, where he was recognized as the top high school...
, who has made the All-Defensive team 11 times.
Nowitzki is the 34th player in NBA history, and the first European, to hit the 20,000-point milestone. Apart from being the Dallas Mavericks' all-time leader in points, rebounds, field goals, field goal attempts, 3-pointers, 3-point attempts, free throws, and free-throw attempts, Nowitzki has made the NBA All-Star games ten times, and the All-NBA Team
All-NBA Team
The All-NBA Team is an annual National Basketball Association honor bestowed on the best players in the league following every NBA season. The voting is conducted by a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters throughout the United States and Canada. The team has been selected in every season of the...
s eleven times. He was voted NBA MVP
NBA Most Valuable Player Award
The National Basketball Association Most Valuable Player is an annual National Basketball Association award given since the 1955–56 NBA season. The winner receives the Maurice Podoloff Trophy, which is named in honor of the first commissioner of the NBA who served from 1946 until his retirement...
of the 2006–07 NBA season, becoming the first European player to receive the honor, as well as the MVP of the 2011 NBA Finals. Other achievements include winning the 2006 NBA All-Star Three-Point Shootout
Three-point Shootout
The Three-Point Shootout is a National Basketball Association contest held on the Saturday before the annual All-Star Game as part of the All-Star Weekend. In this contest, participants attempt to make as many three-point field goals as possible from five positions behind the three-point arc...
, being voted European Basketballer of the Year five times in a row by La Gazzetta dello Sport
La Gazzetta dello Sport
La Gazzetta dello Sport is an Italian newspaper dedicated to coverage of various sports. It was first published on April 3, 1896, allowing it to cover the first modern Olympic Games held in Athens...
, and being the leading scorer and MVP of the 2002 FIBA World Championship
2002 FIBA World Championship
The 2002 FIBA World Championship was an international basketball tournament held by the International Basketball Federation in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA from August 29 to September 8, 2002.-Venues:-Squads:...
, and Eurobasket 2005
Eurobasket 2005
The EuroBasket 2005 was held in Serbia and Montenegro between 16 September and 25 September 2005. Greece won the gold medal by defeating Germany, while France won the bronze medal over Spain...
tournaments.
Regular season
|- style="text-align: Center;"| align="left" | 1998–99
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 47 || 24 || 20.4 || .405 || .206 || .773 || 3.4 || 1.0 || .6 || .6 || 8.2
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 1999–00
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 82 || 81 || 35.8 || .461 || .379 || .830 || 6.5 || 2.5 || .8 || .8 || 17.5
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2000–01
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 82 || 82 || 38.1 || .474 || .387 || .838 || 9.2 || 2.1 || 1.0 || 1.2 || 21.8
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2001–02
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 76 || 76 || 38.0 || .477 || .397 || .853 || 9.9 || 2.4 || 1.1 || 1.0 || 23.4
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2002–03
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 80 || 80 || 39.0 || .463 || .379 || .881 || 9.9 || 3.0 || 1.4 || 1.0 || 25.1
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2003–04
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 77 || 77 || 37.9 || .462 || .341 || .877 || 8.7 || 2.7 || 1.2 || 1.4 || 21.8
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2004–05
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 78 || 78 || 38.7 || .459 || .399 || .869 || 9.7 || 3.1 || 1.2 || 1.5 || 26.1
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2005–06
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 81 || 81 || 38.1 || .480 || .406 || .901 || 9.0 || 2.8 || .7 || 1.0 || 26.6
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2006–07
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 78 || 78 || 36.2 || .502 || .416 || .904 || 8.9 || 3.4 || .7 || .8 || 24.6
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2007–08
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 77 || 77 || 36.0 || .479 || .359 || .879 || 8.6 || 3.5 || .7 || .9 || 23.6
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2008–09
2008–09 NBA season
The 2008–09 NBA season was the 63rd season of the National Basketball Association . The 1,230-game regular season began on Tuesday, October 28, 2008, and ended on Wednesday, April 15, 2009...
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 81 || 81 || 37.7 || .479 || .359 || .890 || 8.4 || 2.4 || .8 || .8 || 25.9
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2009–10
2009–10 NBA season
The 2009–10 NBA season was the 64th season of the National Basketball Association . The 1,230-game regular season began on Tuesday, October 27, 2009, and ended on Wednesday, April 14, 2010....
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 81 || 80 || 37.5 || .481 || .421 || .915 || 7.7 || 2.7 || .9 || 1.0 || 25.0
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2010–11
2010–11 NBA season
The 2010–11 NBA season was the 65th season of the National Basketball Association . The 2011 NBA All-Star Game was played on February 20, 2011 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Miami Heat in six games, 4 games to 2, to win their first NBA title, and...
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 73 || 73 || 34.3 || .517 || .393 || .892 || 7.0 || 2.6 || .5 || .6 || 23.0
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 993 || 968 || 36.5 || .476 || .381 || .877 || 8.4 || 2.7 || .9 || 1.0 || 23.0
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | All-Star
| align="left" |
| 9 || 2 || 17.0 || .458 || .227 || .875 || 4.1 || 1.6 || .8 || .4 || 10.6
Playoffs
|- style="text-align: Center;"| align="left" | 2001
2001 NBA Playoffs
The 2001 NBA Playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2000–01 season. The tournament concluded with the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers winning their second consecutive championship by defeating the Eastern Conference champion Philadelphia 76ers...
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 10 || 10 || 39.9 || .423 || .283 || .883 || 8.1 || 1.4 || 1.1 || .8 || 23.4
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2002
2002 NBA Playoffs
The 2002 NBA Playoffs were the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 2001–02 season. This would be the final postseason that held a best-of-5 first-round series; next year's postseason would see those series expanded to a best-of-7 format...
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 8 || 8 || 44.6 || .445 || .571 || .878 || 13.1 || 2.3 || 2.0 || .8 || 28.4
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2003
2003 NBA Playoffs
The 2003 NBA playoffs was the postseason of the National Basketball Association's 2002-03 NBA season. This postseason was notable for being the first time all series were conducted in a best-of-7 format. It was also the only time in playoff history that no team was swept in a first-round series....
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 17 || 17 || 42.5 || .479 || .443 || .912 || 11.5 || 2.2 || 1.2 || .9 || 25.3
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2004
2004 NBA Playoffs
The 2004 NBA Playoffs were the postseason of the National Basketball Association's 2003–04 season. Consisting of 16 teams in two conferences, the playoffs involved about two months of play. The playoffs were conducted in seven-game series, with the team with the better record holding home court...
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 5 || 5 || 42.4 || .450 || .467 || .857 || 11.8 || 1.4 || 1.4 || 2.6 || 26.6
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2005
2005 NBA Playoffs
The 2005 NBA Playoffs was the postseason of the National Basketball Association's 2004–05 season.The San Antonio Spurs, the number two ranked team in the Western Conference, won the 2005 NBA Playoffs by defeating the defending champions, the Detroit Pistons, 4-3 in the NBA Finals...
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 13 || 13 || 42.4 || .402 || .333 || .829 || 10.1 || 3.3 || 1.4 || 1.6 || 23.7
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2006
2006 NBA Playoffs
The 2006 NBA Playoffs was the postseason of the National Basketball Association's 2005–06 season. The Miami Heat won the first championship in the history of the franchise by defeating the Dallas Mavericks 4-2 in the 2006 NBA Finals...
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 23 || 23 || 42.7 || .468 || .343 || .895 || 11.7 || 2.9 || 1.1 || .6 || 27.0
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2007
2007 NBA Playoffs
The 2007 NBA Playoffs was the postseason to the National Basketball Association's 2006–2007 season.There were four rounds of postseason action, all of them in a best-of-seven format, with teams seeded on a bracket. The team with the better record wasn't necessarily the basis of seeding teams in...
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 6 || 6 || 39.8 || .383 || .211 || .840 || 11.3 || 2.3 || 1.8 || 1.3 || 19.7
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2008
2008 NBA Playoffs
The 2008 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2007–08 season which ended with the Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics defeating the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers 4–2....
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 5 || 5 || 42.2 || .473 || .333 || .808 || 12.0 || 4.0 || .2 || 1.4 || 26.8
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2009
2009 NBA Playoffs
The 2009 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2008–09 season. The playoffs started on April 18, 2009 with ABC, ESPN, TNT, and NBA TV broadcasting the games in the United States...
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 10 || 10 || 39.5 || .518 || .286 || .925 || 10.1 || 3.1 || .9 || .8 || 26.8
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2010
2010 NBA Playoffs
The 2010 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2009–10 season. The playoffs started on April 17, 2010 with ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, TNT, and NBA TV broadcasting the games in the United States...
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 6 || 6 || 38.8 || .547 || .571 || .952 || 8.2 || 3.0 || .8 || .7 || 26.7
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2011
2011 NBA Playoffs
The 2011 NBA Playoffs was the postseason for the National Basketball Association's 2010–11 season. Eight teams from each of the league's two conferences qualified for the playoffs, all seeded 1 to 8 in a tournament bracket, with all rounds in a best-of-seven format. The 2011 NBA Playoffs began on...
| align="left" | Dallas
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011...
| 21 || 21 || 39.3 || .485 || .460 || .941 || 8.1 || 2.5 || .6 || .6 || 27.7
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 124 || 124 || 41.3 || .463 || .384 || .892 || 10.4 || 2.6 || 1.1 || 1.0 || 25.9
International statistics
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:95%; text-align:right;"! Year
! Competition
! GP
! MPG
! FG%
! 3P%
! FT%
! RPG
! APG
! SPG
! BPG
! PPG
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 1997
EuroBasket 1997
-Venues:The tournament was played at three venues in Spain. Girona and Badalona hosted the first and the second round, while the entire knockout stage was played at Palau Sant Jordi, Barcelona.-First round:-Group A:-Group B:-Group C:...
| align="left" | EuroBasket qualification
Eurobasket
The EuroBasket, also referred to as the FIBA European Basketball Championship, is the main basketball competition contested biennially by the men's national teams governed by FIBA Europe, the European zone within the International Basketball Federation. The championship was first held in 1935 and...
| 1 || 3.0 || .000 || .000 || .000 || .0 || .0 || .0 || .0 || .0
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 1999
EuroBasket 1999
-Group B:-Group C:-Group D:-Second round:- Group E :- Group F :-Championship bracket:-5th place bracket:- Quarterfinals :-Classification rounds:- Semifinals :- Third place game:- Final :...
| align="left" | EuroBasket qualification
Eurobasket
The EuroBasket, also referred to as the FIBA European Basketball Championship, is the main basketball competition contested biennially by the men's national teams governed by FIBA Europe, the European zone within the International Basketball Federation. The championship was first held in 1935 and...
| 3 || 16.7 || .600 || .750 || 1.000 || 4.0 || .3 || .3 || .0 || 13.7
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 1999
EuroBasket 1999
-Group B:-Group C:-Group D:-Second round:- Group E :- Group F :-Championship bracket:-5th place bracket:- Quarterfinals :-Classification rounds:- Semifinals :- Third place game:- Final :...
| align="left" | EuroBasket
Eurobasket
The EuroBasket, also referred to as the FIBA European Basketball Championship, is the main basketball competition contested biennially by the men's national teams governed by FIBA Europe, the European zone within the International Basketball Federation. The championship was first held in 1935 and...
| 9 || 31.3 || .582 || .529 || .771 || 3.4 || 1.8 || .9 || .0 || 15.2
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2001
EuroBasket 2001
The EuroBasket 2001 was the 32nd EuroBasket, the biennial regional basketball championship contested by European nations and held by FIBA Europe. The tournament, which was hosted by Turkey, began on 31 August 2001 and concluded with the final on 9 September 2001. Yugoslavia won the gold medal,...
| align="left" | EuroBasket
Eurobasket
The EuroBasket, also referred to as the FIBA European Basketball Championship, is the main basketball competition contested biennially by the men's national teams governed by FIBA Europe, the European zone within the International Basketball Federation. The championship was first held in 1935 and...
| 7 || 33.9 || .516 || .426 || .714 || 9.1 || 1.9 || 1.3 || 1.0 || 28.7
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2002
2002 FIBA World Championship
The 2002 FIBA World Championship was an international basketball tournament held by the International Basketball Federation in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA from August 29 to September 8, 2002.-Venues:-Squads:...
| align="left" | World Championship
FIBA World Championship
The FIBA World Championship is an international basketball competition contested by the men's national teams of the members of the International Basketball Federation , the sport's global governing body...
| 9 || 31.2 || .407 || .286 || .921 || 8.2 || 2.7 || 1.2 || 2.0 || 24.0
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2003
Eurobasket 2003
-5th to 8th place:-Awards:-All-Tournament Team : Tony Parker Šarūnas Jasikevičius Saulius Štombergas Andrei Kirilenko Pau Gasol-Top scorers :# Pau Gasol 25.8# Andrei Kirilenko 23.1# Dirk Nowitzki 22.5# Mehmet Okur 18.7...
| align="left" | EuroBasket
Eurobasket
The EuroBasket, also referred to as the FIBA European Basketball Championship, is the main basketball competition contested biennially by the men's national teams governed by FIBA Europe, the European zone within the International Basketball Federation. The championship was first held in 1935 and...
| 4 || 34.8 || .453 || .455 || .841 || 6.2 || 1.0 || 1.3 || 1.8 || 22.5
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2005
| align="left" | EuroBasket qualification
Eurobasket
The EuroBasket, also referred to as the FIBA European Basketball Championship, is the main basketball competition contested biennially by the men's national teams governed by FIBA Europe, the European zone within the International Basketball Federation. The championship was first held in 1935 and...
| 5 || 32.4 || .500 || .364 || .809 || 11.6 || 2.2 || 1.8 || .8 || 23.6
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2005
Eurobasket 2005
The EuroBasket 2005 was held in Serbia and Montenegro between 16 September and 25 September 2005. Greece won the gold medal by defeating Germany, while France won the bronze medal over Spain...
| align="left" | EuroBasket
Eurobasket
The EuroBasket, also referred to as the FIBA European Basketball Championship, is the main basketball competition contested biennially by the men's national teams governed by FIBA Europe, the European zone within the International Basketball Federation. The championship was first held in 1935 and...
| 7 || 36.9 || .411 || .371 || .885 || 10.6 || 1.7 || 1.1 || 1.9 || 26.1
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2006
2006 FIBA World Championship
The 2006 FIBA World Championship was an international basketball competition hosted by Japan from August 19 to September 3, 2006. It was co-organised by the International Basketball Federation , Japan Basketball Association and the 2006 Organizing Committee...
| align="left" | World Championship
FIBA World Championship
The FIBA World Championship is an international basketball competition contested by the men's national teams of the members of the International Basketball Federation , the sport's global governing body...
| 9 || 33.6 || .434 || .286 || .823 || 9.2 || 2.8 || 1.0 || .6 || 23.2
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2007
Eurobasket 2007
-Group B:-Group C:-Group D:-Second round:- Group E :- Group F :-Championship bracket:- Quarterfinals :-Classification rounds:- Semifinals :- Third place game:- Final :...
| align="left" | EuroBasket
Eurobasket
The EuroBasket, also referred to as the FIBA European Basketball Championship, is the main basketball competition contested biennially by the men's national teams governed by FIBA Europe, the European zone within the International Basketball Federation. The championship was first held in 1935 and...
| 9 || 33.9 || .432 || .313 || .860 || 8.7 || 1.6 || .9 || .9 || 24.0
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2008
| align="left" | Olympic Games qualification
FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament
The FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament, formerly the Pre-Olympic Basketball Tournament, is the last qualifying tournament for the Olympic Basketball Tournament. The best non-champions from the different FIBA zones qualify for the tournament and compete for the last remaining berths in the...
| 5 || 31.2 || .500 || .435 || .922 || 8.2 || 2.6 || .2 || 1.0 || 26.6
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2008
| align="left" | Olympic Games
Basketball at the Summer Olympics
Basketball has been a Summer Olympics sport for men consistently since 1936. Prior to its inclusion as a medal sport, it was held as demonstration event in 1904 and 1932, both in the United States. Women's basketball was played in the Olympics only since 1976....
| 5 || 28.4 || .419 || .417 || .958 || 8.4 || .6 || .2 || .0 || 17.0
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | 2011
Eurobasket 2011
EuroBasket 2011 was the 37th men's European Basketball Championship, held by FIBA Europe. The competition was hosted by Lithuania. This was the second time Eurobasket had been held in Lithuania, the country having also hosted the 1939 championship. FIBA Europe asserted that Lithuania managed to...
| align="left" | EuroBasket
Eurobasket
The EuroBasket, also referred to as the FIBA European Basketball Championship, is the main basketball competition contested biennially by the men's national teams governed by FIBA Europe, the European zone within the International Basketball Federation. The championship was first held in 1935 and...
| 8 || 29.9 || .442 || .421 || .933 || 6.6 || 1.4 || .4 || .4 || 19.5
|- style="text-align: Center;"
| align="left" | Career
| align="left" |
| 81 || 31.6 || .457 || .382 || .855 || 7.1 || 1.8 || .9 || .9 || 22.0
Personal life
Nowitzki's older sister, Silke NowitzkiSilke Nowitzki
Silke Nowitzki is a German former international basketball player. She is the manager of her brother Dirk Nowitzki....
, describes Dirk Nowitzki, four years her junior, as a confident but low-key character, unspoiled by money and fame. He also enjoys reading and playing the saxophone
Saxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
. Nowitzki passed his Abitur
Abitur
Abitur is a designation used in Germany, Finland and Estonia for final exams that pupils take at the end of their secondary education, usually after 12 or 13 years of schooling, see also for Germany Abitur after twelve years.The Zeugnis der Allgemeinen Hochschulreife, often referred to as...
examination at Röntgen Gymnasium Grammar School of Würzburg
Würzburg
Würzburg is a city in the region of Franconia which lies in the northern tip of Bavaria, Germany. Located at the Main River, it is the capital of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. The regional dialect is Franconian....
. He also founded the "Dirk Nowitzki Foundation," a charity which aims at fighting poverty in Africa
Poverty in Africa
Poverty in Africa refers to the lack of basic human needs faced by certain segments of African society. African nations typically fall toward the bottom of any list measuring small size economic activity, such as income per capita or GDP per capita, despite a wealth of natural resources...
.
Nowitzki dated Sybille Gerer, a female basketball player from his local club DJK Würzburg. The relationship started in 1992 and held on for 10 years before it eventually ended; Nowitzki said, "At the end, we found out we developed in separate ways...It did not work anymore, but we are still good friends." He added: "I surely want to start a family and have kids, but I cannot imagine it happening before I become 30." In 2010, Nowitzki met and began dating Jessica Olsson, sister of twin Swedish footballers Martin Olsson
Martin Olsson
Martin Tony Waikwa Olsson is a Swedish footballer who plays for Blackburn Rovers and the Sweden national football team. He signed from Högaborgs BK for a nominal fee in January 2006 after a trial period.-Högaborgs BK:...
and Marcus Olsson
Marcus Olsson
Marcus Olsson is a Swedish footballer of Kenyan descent, who plays as a midfielder for Halmstads BK.-Career:...
.
Nowitzki acknowledged close ties to his mentor Holger Geschwindner, whom he called his best friend. He is also good friends with his ex-teammate Steve Nash
Steve Nash
Stephen John "Steve" Nash, OC, OBC is a South African-born Canadian professional basketball player who plays point guard for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association . Nash enjoyed a successful high-school basketball career, and he was eventually given a scholarship by Santa Clara...
. Nash said of playing with Nowitzki, "We were both joining a new club, living in a new city, we were both single and outsiders: this creates a bond...He made life easier for me and I for him...our friendship was something solid in a very volatile world." Nowitzki added, "He would have also become a good friend if we had met at the supermarket."
Books
Nowitzki's career has been the subject of the book Dirk Nowitzki : German Wunderkind by German sports journalists Dino Reisner and Holger Sauer. It appeared in 2004 at the CoPress Munich publishing house under the ISBN 3-7679-0872-7. The 160-page hardcover book follows Nowitzki's beginnings in his native Würzburg and documents his entry and ascent in the NBA, and ends at the beginning of the 2004–05 NBA season.See also
- List of National Basketball Association career scoring leaders
- List of National Basketball Association career 3-point scoring leaders
- List of National Basketball Association career free throw scoring leaders
- List of National Basketball Association career playoff scoring leaders
- List of National Basketball Association career playoff 3-point scoring leaders
- List of National Basketball Association career playoff free throw scoring leaders
- List of National Basketball Association players with 9 or more steals in a game
- List of National Basketball Association players with 50 or more points in a playoff game
- 2008 Summer Olympics national flag bearers2008 Summer Olympics national flag bearersDuring the Parade of Nations portion of the 2008 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, athletes from each country participating in the Olympics paraded in the arena, preceded by their flag...