The Maverick
An innovative big man who changed the position forever
Dirk is 18 years old and killing it: “He’s kicking our ass, he’s got like 25 at halftime,” exclaims Charles Barkley. “It was Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, a bunch of guys, like NBA players. This is when Scottie was the best defender in the world. Mike and I were like ‘Scottie you’ve got to pick it up’ and Scottie said ‘man, I’m gonna lock him up in the 2nd half’. (Dirk) had 50 points. It was unbelievable…”
Barkley was recounting the first time he saw Dirk Nowitzki in Germany. He was a part of the Nike “Hoop Heroes Tour” in 1997. Barkley tried to recruit Nowitzki to play for Auburn. Sir Charles insisted that Auburn would give him anything he wanted. Nowitzki respectfully declined so he could fulfill his obligation to the German Army. Dirk was many things throughout his professional basketball career. Surprising, effective, frustrating, and loyal. He was also an innovator who changed the game and paved the way for some of the greatest in the NBA today.
The Big man Can Shoot
The first time the NBA world saw Dirk play was at the 1998 Nike Hoop Summit. Former Dallas Mavericks President of Basketball Operations Don Nelson said that the event was “in a lot of respects, Dirk's American Idol, the basketball version, where he crushed it”.
At the time Nowitzki was playing in obscurity on a 2nd Division team in Germany. He recalls having to sneak out of the country for the Hoop Summit because he was still in the Army. His longtime mentor and coach Holger Geschwindner was determined to get to the game. As he said “the Hoop Summit was the only chance to perform on the international high level because we had no idea how (good) he really was.”
The World Team beat a US Team that was made up of several future NBA players: Rashard Lewis, Al Harrington, Quintin Richardson, and Stromile Swift. Nowitzki recalls of the experience, “It was the first time the World team had won. We were hyped!”
Pioneers inherently take risks. They forge paths that no one else has traveled. Getting to the NBA was difficult for European players when Dirk entered the league. In the 1996–97 season there were fewer than 35 international players in the NBA. Before the 2023–24 season a record 125 international players—from 40 countries and territories—were on opening-night rosters. “For me it was super hard. I think nowadays the game has changed so much. It's a little easier for European players to come over and have an immediate impact.” Nowitzki explained.
In 2007 Nowitzki was the first European player to ever earn MVP. He was just the second European player to be voted a Finals MVP and the first to win it. Tony Parker has high praise for Nowitzki, “it started with Dirk,” Parker proclaimed. “Dirk paved the way. Dirk is the GOAT for European basketball. He was the first to be a franchise player.” LeBron James once shared a similar sentiment, “I think he's the greatest international player ever.”
The way he established his title as the Greatest European Player ever was by pure innovation. Nowitzki was 7-feet tall and could shoot as well as any other player in the league. Dirk’s ability to shoot completely changed the game by inspiring teams to add more shooting at the power forward and center positions.
“He’s kicking our ass, he’s got like 25 at halftime.” —Charles Barkley on Dirk’s first game against NBA Stars
In the 19 seasons before Nowitzki entered the NBA, only two 7-foot tall players had ever averaged more than one three-point attempt per game: Arvydas Sabonis and Manute Bol. Bigs played with their backs to the basket and grabbed rebounds. They did the dirty work. Nowitzki came in and showed that a 7-footer could be the focal point of an offense as a shooter. When Dirk retired the number of 7-footers taking over one three point attempt per game had reached 15 in that 2018–19 season.
The three-point shot wasn’t even the greatest aspect of Dirk’s game. He dominated the mid-range. From the 1996–97 season through the 2020–21 season Dirk was the NBA’s scoring leader on shots taken from 13', 14', 15', 16', 17', 18', 19', and 20’ away from the basket. That level of cold-blooded efficiency evokes the Terminator.
Between the mid-range shots, his three-point shooting, and savvy counter moves that opened up driving lanes, Dirk was a scoring machine. He finished his career 6th in All-Time scoring and amassing over 30,000 points.
One Shot to Rule them All
Dirk didn’t just happen upon that dominance by taking flatfooted conventional jump shots. His innovation continued to engross the NBA with his signature one legged fadeaway jumper. “I was trying to create a shot that I could always shoot.” Nowitzki said about the first time he implemented his signature fadeaway. “I felt comfortable shooting one-legged since I was 15. I made it up on the fly. I shot it once in the game and it felt good, didn't take a lot of energy. It's a shot I could always get off.”
Holger Geschwindner, a former German professional basketball player who hooped in the 1972 Olympics, helped train Nowitzki throughout his entire career. He encouraged Dirk to think through every movement of each shot he took. “What is the minimum amount of effort you can use for a shot?” Geschwindner asked. “It's one step, just one step. Then turn the foot around and put the knee and elbow in plane. And everybody who tries to copy it makes the same mistake. The knee goes out, and the elbow go out. They make it harder for themselves because they try to beat the physics. You can do that, but it's very hard. We just tried to simplify it.”
This shooting form was a sort of basketball hack. Dirk and Holger found a way to create separation by doing less work than a drive into a pull-up jumper. Dirk recalls Holger’s initial criticism of the shot: “Holger's big thing on shots is balance, and he didn't like the balance. But I started using it more and more. It was a way to get a good shot up. Less work and a better payoff.” Players like LeBron, Durant, Jokić, and Dončić deploy their own one-legged-fadeaway shot as the league continues to benefit from the impeccable form Nowitzki left behind.
Loyal to the End
Making the NBA, being sixth on the all-time scoring list, and patenting a type of jump shot are all exemplary feats. So is changing the way that the power forward and center positions are played in the game today. But legends win and legends get remembered.
Dirk climbed up from humble beginnings to make the league. He only played 20.4 minutes per game for the Mavericks in his rookie season. He was concerned that he entered the NBA too soon and considered going back to Germany. By his 3rd season the Mavs won a first round series in the Playoffs. By his 4th season Dirk was named an NBA All-Star. He was nearly at the peak of his power.
The Mavs lost in the first and second round of the playoffs each of the next three seasons. As Nowitzki entered his 30s not only was his rise as “the greatest European player” ending but the decline of his career was beginning. The reality of completing his goal and winning a championship was slipping away. In the 2010–11 season the Mavericks finished as the 3rd Seed in the West. Kobe Bryant’s 2-time defending champion Los Angeles Lakers were waiting for them in the second round of the Playoffs.
Both teams won their first round series in six games. They converged in Los Angeles where the Mavs won the first two games and proceeded to finish the job in Dallas winning the next two. Dirk’s Mavs won Game 4 by 36 points! Their sweep of the Lakers was so impressive it caught the attention of the entire basketball world.
“Dirk paved the way. Dirk is the GOAT for European basketball." —Tony Parker
After a 5-game series in OKC, the Mavs squared off against the Heat in the Finals. The Miami roster featured LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh. The Mavs battled valiantly against one of the most stacked teams in NBA history. Dirk powered through adversity—including a game with a 101-degree fever—to lead his team to an NBA Championship in six games.This was the last defining accomplishment that Dirk Nowitzki needed in his career and he did it in the most dramatic fashion. That Championship was the first in Mavs history. It is one of the most impressive runs ever as Dirk’s squad beat Kobe, Durant, LeBron, and Dwyane Wade on his way to the title. His perseverance and loyalty to the Mavs paid off. Dirk is one of just 46 players in NBA history to spend his entire career with one team. He also tops that list with a record 21 seasons!
Dirk Nowitzki’s legacy now lives all over Dallas. He has a street named after him, a retired jersey, a restaurant in the DFW Airport, and a statue in front of the arena where the Mavs play. The statue depicts Dirk in his iconic form with the one legged fadeaway. The innovative shot he brought to the NBA that forever changed the game.
