[外電] Top 50: Dirk Nowitzki, no. 9

[popstarkirby (中肯 正直 不嘴砲 POP)]

http://tinyurl.com/yjl35qd


I know what you’re thinking, and honestly, I can’t blame you. Before I go
and make the case for the most versatile 7-footer in NBA history, I thought I
’d combat any initial dissent by channeling my inner Nowitzki to see if he
can save me the trouble:

“Klar, obwohl wir mit zwei zu null in den Finals fuehrten, haben wir am Ende
verloren. In der naechsten Saison haben wir zwar die meisten Spiele gewonnen,
sind aber in der ersten Runde der Playoffs ausgeschieden. Was soll ich dazu
sagen? Nelly und JAX hatten es einfach drauf. Natuerlich will man solche
Rueckschlaege am liebsten aus dem Lebenslauf streichen, aber im Basketball
musst Du auch manchmal Hoehen und Tiefen erleben. Unterm Strich bin ich der
vielseitigste 2-Meter-Mann in der Geschichte der NBA. Keiner kein mir das
Wasser reichen und ich werde jeden Tag besser. Emry, uebernimm mal …”

Scheisse, apparently my inner-Nowitzki speaks German. Unfortunately, I don’
t, so let me give it a shot on my own.

Related StoriesDirk Nowitzki Content to Share Scoring Load


There’s no getting around the fact that this 7-0, high-arching assassin has
two demerits on his N.B.A. legacy. First, the Mavericks lost the 2006 NBA
Finals after holding a 2-0, and nearly a 3-0, lead against Dwyane Wade, the
officiating crew, and the Miami Heat.

The following season the Mavericks posted the League’s best record, 6th best
in NBA history, only to bow out in the 1st round against Nelly and the Golden
State Warriors. The series was an absolute nightmare for the Mavericks and
Nowitzki, who struggled to adjust to the myriad of scheme coverages Nelly
threw at him, losing in six games.

The 2007 postseason disappointment was put under extended review when
Nowitzki was honored with the league’s MVP award 10 days later. Even while
receiving the highest honor an individual can achieve at the highest level of
professional basketball, it was obvious he was struggling to put a positive
spin on the Maurice Podoloff trophy.

I could use this graph to hurl a slew of cliches regarding putting it all in
the rearview, or using failure as motivation going forward, but I’m not
going that route. These are the facts. Nowitzki has never made excuses, so it
would be moot for me to do that for him. My job is to explain why his
position at No. 9 on the SLAMonline Top 50 is justified, and there’s plenty
of fodder for that.

Check the resume; he is literally un-guardable at 7-feet tall with unlimited
range on his shot. For his career, he’s getting 23 points, 9 rebounds, 87
percent free throw, 3 dimes and 1 block every time he suits up. Hands down,
the most popular international player not hailing from a country with a
population of 1.3 billion, and the first non-North American MVP in league
history. Of his 11 years in the league, he’s been named to an All-NBA team
nine times, including a first team selection in 2009.

It’s important to note that just because a 7-footer doesn’t make his living
exclusively on the block, that doesn’t automatically qualify him as soft.
Nowitzki actually has an outstanding history of durability, playing in at
least 76 games every season, other than his first year in the league. He has
what’s become an almost mythical ability to return from injury. As Mavericks
athletic trainer Casey Smith explained to Mark Stein in 2008: “It’s not
necessarily that Dirk is a fast healer. He’s back playing so fast because he
does everything possible to return as quickly as possible and because he is
by far one of the toughest players I’ve ever worked with. Everyone thinks
that once he’s back on the court that he’s healed up, but in reality he
usually deals with his injuries for days or even weeks after returning.”

Many years removed for their futility, people forget Dirk’s role in turning
around what was easily the worst franchise in professional sports. As a frame
of reference, think back to the original arcade version of NBA JAM. With the
countless number of quarters you pumped into that machine, did you ever once
play as the Mavericks? Did anyone, ever? Remember how they used to rank the
popularity of each team at each location? With respect to Derek Harper and
Mike Iuzzolino, I’m pretty certain Dallas was last everywhere, even in
Dallas.

A Don Nelson-orchestrated draft day fleecing of the Bucks and Suns landed
future MVPs Steve Nash and Nowitzki in Dallas, and the foundation for
transformation was in place.

While it’s easy to point to Nowitzki’s playoff shortcomings, people rarely
mention a young Dirk leading Dallas past Stockton and Malone in the 2001
playoffs - questionable haircut and all – for the franchise’s first playoff
series win since 1988. Or the 2006 Western Conference Semifinals 7 game
victory against a Spurs team that will make a case for being the franchise of
the decade.

Sure, none of that matters if you’re not hoisting the Larry O’Brien trophy
when the final buzzer sounds, but you’re crazy if you don’t think Nowitzki
co-signs on that sentiment.

Reached via-email in reaction to Nowitzki landing No. 9 on the SLAMonline Top
50, Mark Cuban offered his thoughts on Dirk’s impact and legacy as a
Maverick: “Dirk is the face of this franchise. We never would have been able
to accomplish anything without him. He is a cornerstone not just on the
court, but in setting the culture of the organization as well.”

While Cuban’s support of his favorite import comes as no surprise, it also
doesn’t make his statement any less valid.




Slam竟然把Dirk排在Durant後面....

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◆ From: 114.38.58.71
→ wowray      :我只能說Durant以後可能超越Dirk 但不是現在
→ popstarkirby:Melo也排在Dirk前。沒意外的話top 5中會有
→ popstarkirby:Kobe LBJ Wade CP3等人去爭..
推 s93rm6      :Melo Durant至少「現階段」還差Dirk很多吧=.=
推 dirk418     :德佬畢竟不是美國人
→ popstarkirby:這是依據上季表現去排的，不過Durant要超越Dirk還早
推 dmdjjj      :等那幾隻拿過年度MVP再說吧