Gregg Popovich, Dirk Nowitzki, and Dwyane Wade are among the latest NBA legends to be nominated for induction into the Hall of Fame. Their names were included in the list of nominees released on Wednesday for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

“It will be an unbelievable moment, really,” Nowitzki said of the honor. “I mean, to top everything that has happened here the last couple years and words and accolades that have come my way, that will be the ultimate … to be enshrined, hopefully, with the greatest in our game ever.”

Joining the aforementioned NBA stars is the 1976 U.S. Olympic women’s team as well as the 1982 Cheyney University women’s basketball team that became the first historically black college or university to compete for an NCAA title.

While the finalists from the North American and women’s committees for the Hall of Fame are set to be announced at the NBA All-Star weekend on February 17 in Salt Lake City, the full class of Hall of Famers for 2023 is scheduled to be announced at the NCAA Final Four in Houston on April 1. The Hall of Fame enshrinement weekend is set to take place on August 11 and 12.

The post New NBA Hall of Fame Nominee List Unveiled appeared first on SportzBonanza.

When most people think of Dirk Nowitzki’s overall demeanor, the words “kind”, “loyal”, or “dedicated” may come to mind. Put it this way—he’s the last person you’d expect to have beef with any players.

Perhaps this is the reason that we’re only finding out nine years later that Nowitzki did in fact have some beef—with his 2011 NBA championship opponents, the Miami Heat’s LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh.

Considering the fact that Nowitzki led the Dallas Mavericks to an upset victory over them that NBA Finals, this new information has a lot more meaning.

Someone like Nowitzki wouldn’t have allowed his thoughts to get to the surface of the media back then—but after all this time, his former Mavericks teammate JJ Barea has revealed some interesting facts from behind the scenes.

On a podcast with JJ Redick, Barea divulged: “[Nowitzki] was not going to let us lose. The way he prepared the whole year for it. He hated Miami. He hated LeBron, Wade, Bosh. He’s never going to say that, but he couldn’t stand it.”

But apparently there was some extra motivation that got Nowitzki riled up during that series.

“When LeBron and Wade started making fun of him by coughing when he got a little sick … that clip really hurt him,” Barea revealed. “He will never say it, but he really saw the tape and that tape really hurt him. That gave him a little bit extra that he didn’t need, but it gave him a little extra to finish them off.”

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On Tuesday night, Dallas Mavericks’ star Dirk Nowitzki confirmed what everyone pretty much knew all along; he is retiring from the NBA after this season. Nowitzki announced his decision following the 120-109 win over Phoenix Suns in which the 40-year-old German forward scored season-high 30 points.

Following the final buzzer, Mavericks honored Nowitzki with an elaborate postgame ceremony which featured appearances from some of his basketball heroes including Charles Barkley, Scottie Pippen, Larry Bird, Shawn Kemp, and Detlef Schrempf. They joined Mavs’ coach Rick Carlisle and team’s owner Mark Cuban in delivering speeches in Nowitzki’s honor.

“Mark, can’t wait to see what you’ve got for my jersey retirement,” – said Nowitzki after taking the microphone. “I mean, this is a high bar that you set. But as you guys might expect, this is my last home game. I’m trying my yoga breathing, but it’s not really working that well. This is obviously super, super emotional.”

You can watch the full post-game celebration below.

At the postgame press conference, Nowitzki spoke about reasons for his retirement saying that the decision was largely influenced by his recent injuries.

“I think it’s been a long time coming,” – he explained. “I was struggling this year with my foot. That’s no secret. It’s just not there where it needs to be to compete at a high level for 82 games. I felt actually some of the best today, but I’ve got a lot of treatment over the course of the season — pills, injections. It just doesn’t make any sense anymore to keep doing that for another season, even though I’d love to be there. I’d love to be there with [Kristaps Porzingis] and Luka [Doncic] and all these young guys and have fun with them and mentor them as much as I can. But it just doesn’t make any sense anymore physically.”

Dirk Nowitzki was forced to miss the first 26 games of the season after suffering a foot injury during a pickup game in September. After getting back to the court, he struggled with pain which caused him to play career-low minutes. Nowitzki played 50 games in total this season, and averaged 7.1 points and 3.0 rebounds per game.

Nowitzki spent his entire NBA career with Dallas Mavericks, playing 21 seasons in the league. During his time with the organization, he managed to win NBA title and NBA MVP award while earning 14 All-Star appearances and four All-NBA First Team honors.

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In what many assume will be NBA legend Dirk Nowitzki’s final season, the tributes have come rolling in.

However, what the Los Angeles Clippers and their coach Doc Rivers did for the 2011 NBA Finals MVP was unprecedented and something that NBA fans had never seen before.

With his team leading the Mavericks 121-112 in the final seconds of Monday night’s game at Staples Center, Rivers called a timeout.

After the initial confusion as to why Rivers would call a timeout at such a strange moment in the game, the coach walked to the scorer’s table, grabbed the PA microphone, and began to speak.

He chanted “Dirk, Dirk!” and encouraged the Clippers fans in the Staples Center to join him in honoring the retiring legend.

The crowd at Staples Center immediately took to Rivers’ request and began to give Nowitzki a rousing standing ovation to pay tribute to the German power forward’s outstanding career.

The humble 7-footer sheepishly grinned and gave Rivers a thumbs-up, and appeared to get emotional as the crowd applauded. Several Clippers players game over to shake Nowitzki’s hand and to hug him.

The moment between certain Hall of Famers Rivers and Nowitzki was a reminder of why we love sports. It was a historic moment that will go down in NBA history.

The post Clippers Coach Doc Rivers Honors Dirk Nowitzki with Incredible Gesture appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Two NBA’s greats, Miami Heat’s Dwyane Wade and Dallas Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki, will be able to add one more All-Star selection to their name as of Friday. Although Wade and Nowitzki didn’t get enough votes to be in the upcoming All-Star Game, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver stepped in and added them to the ASG roster.

The draft for All-Star Game will be held next Thursday and will see two captains, LeBron James (Los Angeles Lakers) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks), making selections for their roster out of the pool of All-Stars. In the first two rounds of the draft, James and Antetokounmpo will choose between the starters and reserves, while in the third round, they’ll get the chance to select either Wade or Nowitzki.

“As a global celebration of basketball, our All-Star Game is an ideal setting to salute these first-class NBA champions and Finals MVPs,” – said Silver in a statement.

Dwyane Wade, who won three NBA titles with Miami Heat, is currently playing his 18^th season in the NBA and has referred to it as his “last dance,” making a decision to retire this year. Despite this, he has been a valuable contributor from Heat’s bench, and currently averages 13.8 points and 3.7 rebounds per game.

Dirk Nowitzki, who was a champion with Dallas Mavericks in 2011, is also expected to retire after the end of the 2018-19. He is playing his 21^st season in the league, and currently averages 4.4 points and 1.6 rebounds per game.

The post Dwyane Wade, Dirk Nowitzki Earn All-Star Selections appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Dallas Maverick’s youngster Luka Doncic, Eagles’ Ben Simmons and Utah’s Donovan Mitchell will represent rising NBA stars during this year’s All-Star Weekend.

Simmons is the reigning Rookie of the Year award holder while Luka’s numbers place him as the most likely to win the award this year. The two players will also be in the same team at the All-Star weekend as the NBA utilizes a US team versus World team format that will feature rookies and second-year-players.

The team representing the U.S. will consist of Mitchell, Lakers’ duel Kyle Kuzma, and Lonzo Ball, Atlanta’s Trae Youngת and Boston’s Jayson Tatum. John Collis of the Grizzlies, Nets’ Jarret Allen and Sacramento Kings pair De’Aron Fox and Marvin Bagley III.

The World team will include Doncic, Simmons, Phoenix’s Deandre Ayton, Raptor’s OG Anunoby, King’s Bogdan Bogdanovic and Chicago’s Lauri Markkanen. Cleveland’s Cedi Osman, Minnesota’s Josh Okogie and Clipper’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will also be part of the team.

Maverick’s legend Dirk Nowitzki and Boston Celtic’s sensational Kyrie Irving will be opposing coaches in the youngsters’ teams. While Ball was initially named to participate in the game, he won’t play as he recovers from a left ankle sprain suffered January 19^th.

The post Luka Doncic, Donovan Mitchell and Ben Simmons to Lead Rising Stars at All-Star Weekend appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Since entering the NBA 20 years ago, Dallas Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki established himself as the best international player in the history of the league, and one of the power forwards ever. Now, according to the 40-year-old, Mavericks’ newest international acquisition, Luka Doncic could follow the similar path.

During an interview with Dallas radio’s 105.3 The Fan, Nowitzki said that Doncic, who was the third overall pick in 2018 draft, is a lot better than he was in his rookie year.

“I could shoot a little bit [at 19], but I never had the court vision, the savviness and the stuff that he brings to the game,” – said Nowitzki of Doncic. “Just the way he already reads pick-and-rolls. You go under, he shoots. If the man goes over, he kind of keeps him behind him like the best, like Chris Paul and these guys do. He does all of that. He’s going to be fun — fun to watch.“

Luka Doncic enters the NBA as one of the most highly touted international prospects in the past 20 years. Although only 19 years old, Doncic already proved he could play against grown men, becoming the youngest recipient of the EuroLeague MVP and EuroLeague Final Four MVP awards while leading his former club Real Madrid to 2018 EuroLeague title. He also helped his native Slovenia to win the 2017 EuroBasket.

Knowing all this, it is only natural to expect great things from Luka Doncic as soon as he puts on that Dallas Mavericks’ jersey. But transitioning from Europe to NBA isn’t an easy process, and Dirk Nowitzki knows that best. This is why he wants to avoid putting too much pressure on the young Slovenian.

“Obviously, I don’t want to put too much pressure on him,” – Nowitzki added. “Coming over from a different country, I went through the same thing about 20 years ago. It’s tough to adjust to a lot of things: living in a different country, another culture, to a different game, different coaching, different play style. For me, that took a full year. My first year was really, really tough.“

So, if Doncic doesn’t immediately become Mavericks’ best player, don’t worry. Give him a year or two, and he will get there.

The post Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki Praises Rookie Luka Doncic appeared first on SportzBonanza.

We will watch Dirk Nowitzki in the Dallas Mavericks jersey next season as well. Mavs confirmed on Monday that Nowitzki signed a one-year, worth $5 million. Before this, Mavericks declined a second-year option on the 40-year-old’s previous contract to have more cap flexibility.

This means that Nowitzki will break the NBA record for most seasons played with one franchise and tie the record for most seasons played in league with 21.

OFFICIAL: @swish41 has signed with the Mavs for his NBA-RECORD 21st season with the same franchise! #MFFL

MORE: https://t.co/GRQzaW8feS pic.twitter.com/0AR9PNhZMT

— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) July 23, 2018

Dallas Mavericks took Dirk Nowitzki with the ninth overall pick back in 1998 NBA Draft. Although considered a controversial choice at the time, Nowitzki established himself as one of the greatest power forwards in the league’s history.

His 20 years in NBA are filled with numerous accomplishments. Besides being 13 times All-Star, he also has four All-NBA First Team, five All-NBA Second Team, and three All-NBA Third Team honors. Nowitzki also won the NBA Most Valuable Player award in 2007, and led the Mavs to the franchise’s first NBA championship in 2011 when he was also received NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award-

Dirk Nowitzki was also the one to do many firsts when it comes to European players in the league and holds several Mavericks’ franchise records. Nowitzki is sixth on the list of NBA career scoring leaders with 31,187 points and is the highest ranked international player.
In the past season, Nowitzki played 77 games while averaging 12.0 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game.

The post Dirk Nowitzki to Play His 21st Season with Mavs, Signs 1-Year Deal appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Gregg Popovich, Dirk Nowitzki, and Dwyane Wade are among the latest NBA legends to be nominated for induction into the Hall of Fame. Their names were included in the list of nominees released on Wednesday for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

“It will be an unbelievable moment, really,” Nowitzki said of the honor. “I mean, to top everything that has happened here the last couple years and words and accolades that have come my way, that will be the ultimate … to be enshrined, hopefully, with the greatest in our game ever.”

Joining the aforementioned NBA stars is the 1976 U.S. Olympic women’s team as well as the 1982 Cheyney University women’s basketball team that became the first historically black college or university to compete for an NCAA title.

While the finalists from the North American and women’s committees for the Hall of Fame are set to be announced at the NBA All-Star weekend on February 17 in Salt Lake City, the full class of Hall of Famers for 2023 is scheduled to be announced at the NCAA Final Four in Houston on April 1. The Hall of Fame enshrinement weekend is set to take place on August 11 and 12.

The post New NBA Hall of Fame Nominee List Unveiled appeared first on SportzBonanza.

When most people think of Dirk Nowitzki’s overall demeanor, the words “kind”, “loyal”, or “dedicated” may come to mind. Put it this way—he’s the last person you’d expect to have beef with any players.

Perhaps this is the reason that we’re only finding out nine years later that Nowitzki did in fact have some beef—with his 2011 NBA championship opponents, the Miami Heat’s LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh.

Considering the fact that Nowitzki led the Dallas Mavericks to an upset victory over them that NBA Finals, this new information has a lot more meaning.

Someone like Nowitzki wouldn’t have allowed his thoughts to get to the surface of the media back then—but after all this time, his former Mavericks teammate JJ Barea has revealed some interesting facts from behind the scenes.

On a podcast with JJ Redick, Barea divulged: “[Nowitzki] was not going to let us lose. The way he prepared the whole year for it. He hated Miami. He hated LeBron, Wade, Bosh. He’s never going to say that, but he couldn’t stand it.”

But apparently there was some extra motivation that got Nowitzki riled up during that series.

“When LeBron and Wade started making fun of him by coughing when he got a little sick … that clip really hurt him,” Barea revealed. “He will never say it, but he really saw the tape and that tape really hurt him. That gave him a little bit extra that he didn’t need, but it gave him a little extra to finish them off.”

The post Dirk Nowitzki Reportedly “Hated Miami” During 2011 NBA Finals appeared first on SportzBonanza.

On Tuesday night, Dallas Mavericks’ star Dirk Nowitzki confirmed what everyone pretty much knew all along; he is retiring from the NBA after this season. Nowitzki announced his decision following the 120-109 win over Phoenix Suns in which the 40-year-old German forward scored season-high 30 points.

Following the final buzzer, Mavericks honored Nowitzki with an elaborate postgame ceremony which featured appearances from some of his basketball heroes including Charles Barkley, Scottie Pippen, Larry Bird, Shawn Kemp, and Detlef Schrempf. They joined Mavs’ coach Rick Carlisle and team’s owner Mark Cuban in delivering speeches in Nowitzki’s honor.

“Mark, can’t wait to see what you’ve got for my jersey retirement,” – said Nowitzki after taking the microphone. “I mean, this is a high bar that you set. But as you guys might expect, this is my last home game. I’m trying my yoga breathing, but it’s not really working that well. This is obviously super, super emotional.”

You can watch the full post-game celebration below.

At the postgame press conference, Nowitzki spoke about reasons for his retirement saying that the decision was largely influenced by his recent injuries.

“I think it’s been a long time coming,” – he explained. “I was struggling this year with my foot. That’s no secret. It’s just not there where it needs to be to compete at a high level for 82 games. I felt actually some of the best today, but I’ve got a lot of treatment over the course of the season — pills, injections. It just doesn’t make any sense anymore to keep doing that for another season, even though I’d love to be there. I’d love to be there with [Kristaps Porzingis] and Luka [Doncic] and all these young guys and have fun with them and mentor them as much as I can. But it just doesn’t make any sense anymore physically.”

Dirk Nowitzki was forced to miss the first 26 games of the season after suffering a foot injury during a pickup game in September. After getting back to the court, he struggled with pain which caused him to play career-low minutes. Nowitzki played 50 games in total this season, and averaged 7.1 points and 3.0 rebounds per game.

Nowitzki spent his entire NBA career with Dallas Mavericks, playing 21 seasons in the league. During his time with the organization, he managed to win NBA title and NBA MVP award while earning 14 All-Star appearances and four All-NBA First Team honors.

The post Mavs’ Dirk Nowitzki Officially Confirms His Retirement from NBA appeared first on SportzBonanza.

In what many assume will be NBA legend Dirk Nowitzki’s final season, the tributes have come rolling in.

However, what the Los Angeles Clippers and their coach Doc Rivers did for the 2011 NBA Finals MVP was unprecedented and something that NBA fans had never seen before.

With his team leading the Mavericks 121-112 in the final seconds of Monday night’s game at Staples Center, Rivers called a timeout.

After the initial confusion as to why Rivers would call a timeout at such a strange moment in the game, the coach walked to the scorer’s table, grabbed the PA microphone, and began to speak.

He chanted “Dirk, Dirk!” and encouraged the Clippers fans in the Staples Center to join him in honoring the retiring legend.

The crowd at Staples Center immediately took to Rivers’ request and began to give Nowitzki a rousing standing ovation to pay tribute to the German power forward’s outstanding career.

The humble 7-footer sheepishly grinned and gave Rivers a thumbs-up, and appeared to get emotional as the crowd applauded. Several Clippers players game over to shake Nowitzki’s hand and to hug him.

The moment between certain Hall of Famers Rivers and Nowitzki was a reminder of why we love sports. It was a historic moment that will go down in NBA history.

The post Clippers Coach Doc Rivers Honors Dirk Nowitzki with Incredible Gesture appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Two NBA’s greats, Miami Heat’s Dwyane Wade and Dallas Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki, will be able to add one more All-Star selection to their name as of Friday. Although Wade and Nowitzki didn’t get enough votes to be in the upcoming All-Star Game, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver stepped in and added them to the ASG roster.

The draft for All-Star Game will be held next Thursday and will see two captains, LeBron James (Los Angeles Lakers) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks), making selections for their roster out of the pool of All-Stars. In the first two rounds of the draft, James and Antetokounmpo will choose between the starters and reserves, while in the third round, they’ll get the chance to select either Wade or Nowitzki.

“As a global celebration of basketball, our All-Star Game is an ideal setting to salute these first-class NBA champions and Finals MVPs,” – said Silver in a statement.

Dwyane Wade, who won three NBA titles with Miami Heat, is currently playing his 18^th season in the NBA and has referred to it as his “last dance,” making a decision to retire this year. Despite this, he has been a valuable contributor from Heat’s bench, and currently averages 13.8 points and 3.7 rebounds per game.

Dirk Nowitzki, who was a champion with Dallas Mavericks in 2011, is also expected to retire after the end of the 2018-19. He is playing his 21^st season in the league, and currently averages 4.4 points and 1.6 rebounds per game.

The post Dwyane Wade, Dirk Nowitzki Earn All-Star Selections appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Dallas Maverick’s youngster Luka Doncic, Eagles’ Ben Simmons and Utah’s Donovan Mitchell will represent rising NBA stars during this year’s All-Star Weekend.

Simmons is the reigning Rookie of the Year award holder while Luka’s numbers place him as the most likely to win the award this year. The two players will also be in the same team at the All-Star weekend as the NBA utilizes a US team versus World team format that will feature rookies and second-year-players.

The team representing the U.S. will consist of Mitchell, Lakers’ duel Kyle Kuzma, and Lonzo Ball, Atlanta’s Trae Youngת and Boston’s Jayson Tatum. John Collis of the Grizzlies, Nets’ Jarret Allen and Sacramento Kings pair De’Aron Fox and Marvin Bagley III.

The World team will include Doncic, Simmons, Phoenix’s Deandre Ayton, Raptor’s OG Anunoby, King’s Bogdan Bogdanovic and Chicago’s Lauri Markkanen. Cleveland’s Cedi Osman, Minnesota’s Josh Okogie and Clipper’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander will also be part of the team.

Maverick’s legend Dirk Nowitzki and Boston Celtic’s sensational Kyrie Irving will be opposing coaches in the youngsters’ teams. While Ball was initially named to participate in the game, he won’t play as he recovers from a left ankle sprain suffered January 19^th.

The post Luka Doncic, Donovan Mitchell and Ben Simmons to Lead Rising Stars at All-Star Weekend appeared first on SportzBonanza.

Since entering the NBA 20 years ago, Dallas Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki established himself as the best international player in the history of the league, and one of the power forwards ever. Now, according to the 40-year-old, Mavericks’ newest international acquisition, Luka Doncic could follow the similar path.

During an interview with Dallas radio’s 105.3 The Fan, Nowitzki said that Doncic, who was the third overall pick in 2018 draft, is a lot better than he was in his rookie year.

“I could shoot a little bit [at 19], but I never had the court vision, the savviness and the stuff that he brings to the game,” – said Nowitzki of Doncic. “Just the way he already reads pick-and-rolls. You go under, he shoots. If the man goes over, he kind of keeps him behind him like the best, like Chris Paul and these guys do. He does all of that. He’s going to be fun — fun to watch.“

Luka Doncic enters the NBA as one of the most highly touted international prospects in the past 20 years. Although only 19 years old, Doncic already proved he could play against grown men, becoming the youngest recipient of the EuroLeague MVP and EuroLeague Final Four MVP awards while leading his former club Real Madrid to 2018 EuroLeague title. He also helped his native Slovenia to win the 2017 EuroBasket.

Knowing all this, it is only natural to expect great things from Luka Doncic as soon as he puts on that Dallas Mavericks’ jersey. But transitioning from Europe to NBA isn’t an easy process, and Dirk Nowitzki knows that best. This is why he wants to avoid putting too much pressure on the young Slovenian.

“Obviously, I don’t want to put too much pressure on him,” – Nowitzki added. “Coming over from a different country, I went through the same thing about 20 years ago. It’s tough to adjust to a lot of things: living in a different country, another culture, to a different game, different coaching, different play style. For me, that took a full year. My first year was really, really tough.“

So, if Doncic doesn’t immediately become Mavericks’ best player, don’t worry. Give him a year or two, and he will get there.

The post Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki Praises Rookie Luka Doncic appeared first on SportzBonanza.

We will watch Dirk Nowitzki in the Dallas Mavericks jersey next season as well. Mavs confirmed on Monday that Nowitzki signed a one-year, worth $5 million. Before this, Mavericks declined a second-year option on the 40-year-old’s previous contract to have more cap flexibility.

This means that Nowitzki will break the NBA record for most seasons played with one franchise and tie the record for most seasons played in league with 21.

OFFICIAL: @swish41 has signed with the Mavs for his NBA-RECORD 21st season with the same franchise! #MFFL

MORE: https://t.co/GRQzaW8feS pic.twitter.com/0AR9PNhZMT

— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) July 23, 2018

Dallas Mavericks took Dirk Nowitzki with the ninth overall pick back in 1998 NBA Draft. Although considered a controversial choice at the time, Nowitzki established himself as one of the greatest power forwards in the league’s history.

His 20 years in NBA are filled with numerous accomplishments. Besides being 13 times All-Star, he also has four All-NBA First Team, five All-NBA Second Team, and three All-NBA Third Team honors. Nowitzki also won the NBA Most Valuable Player award in 2007, and led the Mavs to the franchise’s first NBA championship in 2011 when he was also received NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award-

Dirk Nowitzki was also the one to do many firsts when it comes to European players in the league and holds several Mavericks’ franchise records. Nowitzki is sixth on the list of NBA career scoring leaders with 31,187 points and is the highest ranked international player.
In the past season, Nowitzki played 77 games while averaging 12.0 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game.

The post Dirk Nowitzki to Play His 21st Season with Mavs, Signs 1-Year Deal appeared first on SportzBonanza.