By George Efkarpides / info@eurohoops.net
Dirk Nowitzki received a warm standing ovation from fans during the last All-Star Game of his prosperous career, and the gesture was repeated a few days after when Clippers coach Doc Rivers took the mic and encouraged everyone to give a huge round of applause for the German legend.
“I had no idea what would happen when he called the time out. It was a surprising moment. It was my 1500th game. I kept the ball. Who would have thought 20 years ago when I came to the league and I was having a hard time, that I would reach 1,500 games. It was a career full of emotions. I always tried to be there for the team and the city”, he mentions.
Dirk became the fourth player in NBA history to reach such an important milestone of games played.
For Nowitzki, it’s been an emotional 2019 so far. “It all started a few weeks ago in Charlotte, where people were shouting in the end,” We want Dirk. ” Since then it has continued in Boston, Indiana, in the cities of the east coast, in New York … And it goes on like that. Obviously, I enjoy it. I feel good. I play and play more than I should. I enjoy it. It’s something different. The people in Boston and Indiana are cheering on you to score against their team. That was strange. To try, to push myself to score. Unusual feeling. I appreciate it”, the German great reflects.
Dirk wants to be remembered “as a guy with a good shot” but not only: “I want to be remembered as someone who was always there for the team, who wanted to win, to be competitive, to play with his teammates, to enjoy playing the sport he loves”.
As his legacy has a huge impact in the newcomers of the league, the Mavericks fans have one more European to cheer for, and that’s no other than Luka Doncic: “I learned about him when he won the EuroBasket with Slovenia. Everybody said there was a young player on the basketball team. I watched him a little more closely next year in Euroleague with Real Madrid. I did not see the games, only highlights, but I saw how he could do things. He exceeded all expectations. You can hardly mark him, he has the whole package in the offense, his IQ is that of a 19-20-year-old”.