"He was torching Dirk with really nice words" - Dirk Nowitzki's former teammate calls Tim Duncan a low-key "very sarcastic sh*t-talker"

Dirk Nowitzki and Tim Duncan are two of the best power forwards in NBA history, so every time they matched up was a treat to the fans. There would probably have been more fireworks during their faceoffs had they engaged in verbal warfare on the court. But that wasn't the case, as both are renowned for their usually peaceful nature.

Maurice Ager, who played two seasons on the Dallas Mavericks from 2006 to 2008, appeared on Brandon "Scoop B" Robinson's show and shared what a battle between the two titans looked like. The retired swingman even hilariously described Duncan as a "low-key very sarcastic sh*t-talker."

"He was more so, like, 'Bank,'" Ager said. "He was torching Dirk with really nice words. I never heard anybody talk sh*t that easy."

Duncan's affable nature

Perhaps the San Antonio Spurs legend's friendliness prevented him from antagonizing opponents. But that didn't stop him from dominating the competition with his fundamentally sound game. According to Ager, though, Duncan had his own way of getting into other players' heads.

"I remember one time, our team was already huddling up, he like, 'Hey, you might wanna go to your team in the huddle,'" the Michigan native added.

The very vocal Kevin Garnett has given the most vivid picture of what it's like to be on the receiving end of Duncan's "trash talks," saying that the five-time NBA champion used to beat him at his own game by praising him or uttering, "Got you" or "Nice try." The subtleties and non-aggression had Garnett pissed off, and it wouldn't be surprising if other players had felt the same way when going up against "The Big Fundamental."

Nowitzki's battles with Timmy

Ager didn't say if Nowitzki also got bent out of shape when dealing with Duncan's low-key trash-talking. Chances are, the Mavs icon wasn't since he had a similar nature to that of his former rival.

What annoyed Dirk probably was the fact that he lost more games than he won against his fellow Hall of Famer. The pair faced off a total of 90 times, with Duncan winning 53 of those contests. In the regular season, Timmy held a 35-22 edge, and their playoff head-to-head record was more neck and neck (18-15 in favor of TD.)

The consolation for Nowitzki is that he outscored the two-time MVP 47 times in those matchups. Their final showdown, which took place in 2016, was a bit anticlimactic. Duncan had just two points, with Dirk having the final say in their storied rivalry by scoring two more.

Related: “Maybe it was even a good thing for me as a player to lose that series” - Dirk Nowitzki was glad the Mavericks lost in the 2006 Finals