By: Sahil Patel
March 21st, 2016
At the age of 37, most professional athletes consider retirement, some think to join a superior team for greater chances at championships, however Dirk Nowitzki still has his mind on leading the Mavericks to yet another playoff appearance. On Sunday, March 20th, Dirk played one of his best games of recent memory in a pivotal Western Conference match against the Trail Blazers of Portland. Not only did the seven foot German net 40 points, but he also tied with Steve Nash on the NBA's all-time 3-pointers made list. Once again, we see the way Dirk has changed the game and how he clearly is one of the best to ever play.
While we don't hear much about him, due to his team's recent struggles, Dirk Nowitzki has paved the way for not only foreign players, but for big men in general. We see an up and coming player who has a similar game to Dirk in Kristaps Porzingis. Dirk basically created one of the most unguardable moves in all of basketball, the one-legged fadeaway. Players around the league still haven't found a way to stop the move and it is still deadly, as we saw in the Portland game.
As you look at Dirk's individual accolades, it is hard to argue of his dominance:
- NBA Finals MVP: 2011
- NBA Most Valuable Player: 2007
- 13× NBA All-Star: 2002–2012, 2014–2015
- 12× All-NBA Team: 2001–2012
- 4× First Team: 2005–2007, 2009
- 5× Second Team: 2002–2003, 2008, 2010–2011
- 3× Third Team: 2001, 2004, 2012
- Ranked 6th in all-time-scoring
- Ranked 8th in all-time defensive-rebounds
- Ranked 2nd in all-time NBA Finals free throw percentage
- 82 consecutive free throws made (the third-longest streak of all-time)
- One of ten players to surpass the marks of 25,000 in points and 9,000 in rebounds for the career
- Holds the record for most free-throws made in a single playoff season with 205 free-throws made: 2006
- Dallas Mavericks all-time statistical leader in games, points, rebounds, field goals, three-point field goals and free throws
And it seems as if he has gotten better as he has aged. Not only is Dirk a great individual player, however he is known to be a great team player. He has, at numerous times, took a salary cut so that the team has more money to spend for free-agents.
As of now, the Mavericks are looking to be in the playoff hunt at the 8th seed and are looking good with a promising roster. At the point-guard spot, Deron Williams has seemed to turn back the clock at times with many impressive performances including dropping 31 points and 16 assists against the Trail Blazers on Sunday as well. And with Wesley Mathews and Chandler Parsons performing consistently, the Mavericks could be a dangerous team come playoff time. They showed earlier in the season that they can matchup to the Warriors, who is currently at the number 1 seed in the West and will play them if the standings do not change. As the playoffs near, Mavericks fans are anxious to see Dirk work his magic and carry them to a deep playoff run.
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