NBA: 30 greatest international players in league history
Greatest international NBA players of all time: 2. Dirk Nowitzki
In the NBA of 2019, it’s completely normal to watch a seven-footer venture out beyond the 3-point line and reign down looks from beyond the arc. Back when Dirk Nowitzki came into the league in 1998, not so much. That didn’t stop him from letting it fly, chipping away at the long-held beliefs of the game in ways that would change it forever.
Nowitzki’s legendary career didn’t get off to a hot start. Far from it in fact, as many were quick to label him a bust after he shot 40.5 percent from the field and 20.6 percent from distance as a rookie. Critics labeled him soft for failing to comply with traditional scoring methods, but none of it deterred the big German, not even a little.
Eventually, Dirk became one of the best scorers in the league with a per game average that hovered around the early to mid-20s for the better part of over a decade. The crux of his arsenal? A patented one-legged fadeaway that not even the lankiest of opponents could get a decent contest on.
He mixed in a career 38.0 percent 3-point with subtle bursts of quickness to average 20.7 points per game. That number might not seem like much, but when stretched out over the course of 21 NBA seasons, it placed Nowitzki sixth on the NBA’s all-time scoring list with 31,560, the most of any international player ever.
For as great an individual player as Nowitzki was, team success always seemed to elude him. There was the blown 2-0 lead in the 2006 Finals followed up by an opening round defeat at the hands of the eighth-seeded Golden State Warriors.
His talent would no doubt place him in the Hall of Fame, but it looked as though he was headed towards the table of ringless legends. That is, of course, until 2011, where Dirk cemented his legacy with one of the greatest playoff runs of all time.
He shot 48.5 percent from the field and 46.0 percent from beyond the arc on his way to average 27.7 points and 8.5 rebounds across 21 playoff games. Some will always place asterisks on title-winning teams due to unforeseen circumstances that provided an advantage, but that wasn’t the case for the Mavericks in 2011
In round two they swept the two-time defending champion Lakers. They took down the newly-minted Big Three in Miami to claim their first championship in franchise history. Through it all, Nowitzki led the charge, fueled by past failures with big-time shot-making that culminated in the Finals MVP award.
Nowitzki was the rare legend who never sought out greener pastures, having set the record for the most years spent with one team at 21, all in Dallas. His career may have suffered because of it, but to win one for the Mavericks after repeatedly falling short meant more than any number of rings with another organization.
Dirk was a 12-time All-NBA member with the 11th most 3-point makes in league history. When fans watch a towering seven-footer step out beyond the arc, it’s because Nowitzki’s success empowered them to expand outward.
He is the one and only Maverick, the man who gave his everything to bring the franchise the ultimate prize. Nowitzki is headed to the Hall of Fame and will forever be remembered for the changes he helped foster with his own unique twist that could only be respected by a man of his talent.