On Friday, the Dallas Mavericks announced that Dirk Nowitzki would have his jersey retired in a ceremony to be held after their January 5th game against the Golden State Warriors. The ceremony will occur with NBA commissioner Adam Silver joining owner Mark Cuban and coach Jason Kidd on the guest list.
Nowitzki’s number 41 jersey will get retired in what appropriately is the Mavericks 41st season in existence. Nowitzki joins Rolando Blackman (No. 22), Brad Davis (No. 15), and Derek Harper (No. 12) as Mavericks players to have their jersey retired.
The franchise also has retired the number 24 jersey of Lakers star Kobe Bryant to honor him after he died in a January 2020 helicopter crash.
It was only a matter of time as Nowitzki is, without a doubt, the greatest Dallas Maverick in the franchise’s history. He is the only player ever to play 21-years for one team and was the Finals MVP in 2011 when the Mavericks upset the heavily favored Miami Heat for the franchise’s first championship.
Nowitzki retired in 2019 after scoring 31,560 points in his career, the sixth-most in NBA history. He finished his career with averages of 20.7 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game.
Nowitzki is the franchise leader in several all-time categories, including games played, points scored, rebounds, blocks, and three-pointers. He was a 14-time all-star and became the first European to be named the league MVP following the 2006-07 season.
In that season, he became only the sixth player in NBA history to make 90 percent of his free throws, 50 percent of his shots, and 40 percent of his three-pointers over the course of a regular season.
Nowitzki grew up in Germany and was a trailblazer for international players in the NBA. His excellent career and loyalty to Dallas made him a fan favorite and already led to a street being named after him. He is sure to receive even more tributes and accolades post-career. This year he was named to the NBA’s 75th-anniversary team.