Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki to receive major career honor

When fans debate the best Dallas Mavericks player of all time, the conversation usually starts and ends with Dirk Nowitzki.

Had Luka Doncic not been traded to the Los Angeles Lakers last season, he could’ve made a case to dethrone the 47-year-old German. He falls in line somewhere behind Nowitzki alongside Jason Kidd, Steve Nash, Michael Finley, Derek Harper, and Rolando Blackman.

Nowitzki’s resume’s is tough to beat.

The No. 9 overall pick in the 1998 draft, Nowitzki was a 14-time All-Star, a four-time All-NBA first-teamer, a five-time All-NBA second-teamer, an NBA champion, an NBA Finals MVP, a league MVP, a 3-point contest champion, he was named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team, and his No. 41 was retired by the Mavericks.

But the NBA wasn’t the only place he left his mark. Nowitzki was one of the more dominant international players of his time, which is why he’s being inducted to the FIBA Basketball Hall of Fame class of 2026.

“He will be honored at an enshrinement ceremony in Berlin on April 21, along with other members of the class — Sue Bird (USA), Celine Dumerc (France), Hedo Türkoğlu (Türikye), Clarisse Eulalia Machanguana Ambrosi (Mozambique), Ludwik Miętta-Mikołajewicz (Poland), Whang Zhizhi (China) and Ismenia Pauchard (Chile), who is being inducted posthumously,” FIBA announced on Friday.

Nowitzki won the FIBA World Cup championship in 2002, which was just one of the many honors he collected while playing international games for FIBA.

He was also the FIBA Basketball World Cup top scorer in 2005 and 2007, he won the FIBA EuroBasket MVP in 2005, he won two FIBA Europe’s Men’s Player of the Year awards in 2005 and 2011, and he was named to the FIBA EuroBasket Dream Team in 2020.

The former power forward also won bronze at the 2002 FIBA World Championships and silver in the FIBA EuroBasket tournament in 2005, and he became the first German men’s player to have his number retired.