Dirk Nowitzki played 21 seasons in the NBA. In that period he saw the development of the game. And while basketball is still one of his main loves, he does take issue with some aspects of said development.
In 1998, the Milwaukee Bucks selected Nowitzki with the ninth overall pick. He was quickly traded to the Dallas Mavericks and this is where he spent the next two-plus decades. He never maneuvered for a trade or attempted to assemble a "mega team" of any kind. He remained associated with the organization and found success through chemistry and hard work.
And that's exactly the point Nowitzki takes with modern NBA players.
"It's definitely new," Nowitzki said on SI's Crossover podcast. "We always felt like early in my career the players didn't have enough power, and the bosses had all the power, could make all the moves. And now it's almost shifting like a little too much. I think That should be like a happy medium. But now that players are forcing themselves out, there is no way for me to go."
Nowitzki insists he doesn't want to come across as disrespectful to the players, but can't wrap his mind around the repeated power grabs.
"I was old school," Nowitzki said. "(Personally), I don't want to sit here judging these people for what they're doing. I think everyone needs to know what's best for themselves, for their career, for their brand. It's -- you know, everybody has a brand now -- and what's best for their family. For me, it was living in Dallas. It worked great there. And I had my family there and I Loved it and I grew in that community. So it's something that just works for me. But of course, I get it. It's not for everyone."
Roots are not planted exactly as they once were. In recent years, we have not only seen the emergence of "mega teams" with the aim of winning an easy ring, but we also see players constantly forcing trades by any means necessary. James Harden, Kawhi Leonard, Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving, Jimmy Butler, Russell Westbrook, Ben Simmons and John Wall are some of the names that come to mind.
And Nowitzki could have been one of them. He admits that at the end of his career there was an opportunity to make a move and perhaps pick up a ring. He grew out of loyalty to the Mavericks organization.
"At the end of my career, I probably could have tried elsewhere to get that ring," Nowitzki said. "I guess that would have really been the only reason I left. But Dallas was the place for me. People have supported me from the start, even when things weren't going well for me in my first year."
Ironically, the decision to remain loyal to Dallas paid huge dividends for Nowitzki, who secured his one and only NBA championship in 2011.