Standing at 7 feet tall, you'd think Dirk Nowitzki 's biggest advantage was just his height, but that’s just scratching the surface. What truly made Nowitzki a nightmare for NBA defenses for over two decades was his incredible scoring ability. The German giant was one of the few 7-footers in history to consistently knock down shots at an elite clip as a three-level scorer.
He averaged over 20 points per game for twelve straight seasons. Even after losing a superstar teammate like Steve Nash in 2004—one of the best passers in the league—it didn’t slow him down.
Take it from Carmelo Anthony . During his early years with the Denver Nuggets , Melo went head-to-head with Dirk and the Mavericks numerous times, and in an episode of Paul George’s podcast, he shared a firsthand experience of how much of a headache it was to try and contain the towering sharpshooter.
“Dirk don’t need no dribbles to score,” Anthony said on “Podcast P.” “He might be the ultimate phone booth guy. He don’t need no dribbles to score. He just catch it and shot fake, you jumping okay cool. Shot fake you jump I’ma jump into you. If your hands is down, I’ma fade. It was like I can play all pivot. I can high jab low jab – go left, pull up, go right.”
Consistent German scoring machine
Over 21 incredible NBA seasons, all of them with the Dallas Mavericks, Nowitzki went from being a willowy teenager to a bona fide legend. It’s not every day that a guy sticks with one team his entire career, let alone redefines the game while doing it. Only five players in NBA history have outscored Dirk’s 31,560 career points — and when you take a look at those five players, you understand why the German bomber isn’t given as much credit as he should.
Most of those came from his signature jumpers—shots that big men just didn’t take, let alone consistently knock down. But he made those high-arcing jumpers look natural.
“I don’t think people understand; these younger guys will understand or understand who Dirk Nowitzki was,” Anthony added.
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One-man army
As the only player to spend 21 seasons with a single NBA franchise, Dirk was as loyal as they come. He was also one of the best—the first European player to be named NBA MVP and only the third player born outside the U.S. to earn that title, following Hakeem Olajuwon and Steve Nash.
He’s also one of just 19 players to have won both the regular-season and NBA Finals MVP awards. He took home the latter in 2011 when he led the Mavericks to their first-ever NBA championship as the only top player on that team.
During that postseason, he averaged 27.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per game while shooting at 49% from the field, 46% from three-point range, and 94% from the free-throw line.
He and the Mavericks took down the defending back-to-back champions, the Lakers, in a four-game sweep. Then, they outclassed the up-and-coming Oklahoma City Thunder, featuring Kevin Durant , Russell Westbrook, and James Harden, in a five-game series. Dirk faced the Miami Heat’s big three of LeBron James , Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh in the Finals.
It was a shot at redemption for Nowitzki after a painful loss to the Heat team in the 2006 Finals, where he missed a crucial free throw in the closing seconds of Game 3 and struggled in Game 4, shooting just 2-for-14 from the field.
This time, however, things turned out differently. Despite battling through an injured finger in his left hand, Dirk hit a crucial scoop layup in Game 2 to tie the series while also dealing with the flu that James and Wade mocked before Game 4.
The Mavs ended up being victorious in six games, with No. 41 averaging 26.0 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 2.0 assists. He came back stronger five years later and wasn’t going to let his team lose this time.
Related: Avery Johnson recalls his time with Dirk Nowitzki in Dallas: "Another Tim Duncan with a different type of game"
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