indianwhite
Guru
<h2>Okay guys, check this article out, my apologies, it dates way last year</span>: </font></font>
</span></h2><h2>Nowitzki wants title to define his legacy with Dallas Mavericks</span></h2></font>
Dallas Mavericks' all-time leading scorer wants more
</span></font>
<h5>01:19 PM CDT on Monday, March 10, 2008</span></h5></font>
By CHUCK CARLTON / The Dallas Morning News
ccarlton@dallasnews.com </span></font>
Dirk Nowitzki knows many will judge his Mavericks legacy by more than scoring numbers.
He plans to evaluate it the same way.
"I think in 10 or 20 years, I'm going to look back on my career and see
what I did," Nowitzki said. "Hopefully there is a lot more to come,
especially a championship. This will mean more to me when my career is
over."
Nowitzki's 34 points Saturday against New Jersey
made him the franchise's all-time leading scorer, passing Rolando
Blackman, cementing his status in Mavericks history.
Whatever he scores the rest of the season
will be just as relevant as the 16,644 points that preceded it. The
Mavericks remain seventh in the vise-tight Western Conference, going
into tonight's home game with the New York Knicks.
Since
two games before the All-Star break, Nowitzki has put together a streak
that looks similar to his MVP run last season. In his last 11 games,
Nowitzki is averaging 30.7 points and 9.2 rebounds while shooting 50.2
percent from the field.
"He knows we, as a team, have a
higher level to go to," coach Avery Johnson said. "There's a new
dimension for us to go to, and he knows we're not there yet."
Nowitzki allowed himself a bit of reflection after breaking the record Saturday night.
At first, he seemed like an odd choice to become the face of the
franchise. Not everybody loved the Mavericks' draft day trade with
Milwaukee in 1998 to secure the German teen. His game and his psyche
have been dissected when the Mavericks have fallen short in the
playoffs.
"Obviously, sometimes it flashes in your mind
that this has been an amazing ride," Nowitzki said. "Like I said, when
I first got here I don't think a lot of people believed I could score
1,000 in this league, let alone 17,000."
Nowitzki
admitted to mixed emotions. He's friends with Blackman, the Mavericks
director of basketball development. Blackman once served as an
assistant for the German National team.
"I hate to break
that record and take it from him," Nowitzki said, "but it's definitely
a great honor for me."
Blackman had prepared himself for what he viewed as inevitable. <div> <div id="newsnow"> <div style="width: 225px; padding-top: 8px;">
<div> <div> AP
Dirk Nowitzki has averaged 30.7 points and 9.2 rebounds in his last 11 games. </div></div> </div> </div> </div>
"I saw that four or five years ago, that scoring at the pace he was
scoring and really having the opportunity to become a great leader on
this basketball team, that if he stayed here and stayed healthy ...
that he'd break the record," Blackman said.
His
prediction: Nowitzki will eventually propel the mark over 20,000
points</span>, elite territory achieved by only 32 NBA players.
Blackman considers himself fortunate to hold the Mavericks record for
so long, since he was the team's No. 2 option behind Mark Aguirre for
part of his career.
Brad Davis, a Mavericks broadcaster
and player development coach, knows the games of Blackman and Nowitzki
well.
Although Nowitzki plays power forward and Blackman was a prototypical '80s big guard, he sees similarities.
"Dirk is a great catch-and-shoot guy and Ro was one of the best in the
league, coming off screens, catching and shooting it," Davis said.
Factor the work ethic, too, Davis said. Blackman was famous for it. And
when Nowitzki was suspended last week for the game with Houston, he
still managed 75-minute workout that afternoon.
"He just loves being in the gym," Davis said.
Staff Writer David Moore contributed to this report.
Dirk's latest tally as of now is 18,002</span> points</span></span>Edited by: indianwhite
</span></h2><h2>Nowitzki wants title to define his legacy with Dallas Mavericks</span></h2></font>
Dallas Mavericks' all-time leading scorer wants more
</span></font>
<h5>01:19 PM CDT on Monday, March 10, 2008</span></h5></font>
By CHUCK CARLTON / The Dallas Morning News
ccarlton@dallasnews.com </span></font>
Dirk Nowitzki knows many will judge his Mavericks legacy by more than scoring numbers.
He plans to evaluate it the same way.
"I think in 10 or 20 years, I'm going to look back on my career and see
what I did," Nowitzki said. "Hopefully there is a lot more to come,
especially a championship. This will mean more to me when my career is
over."
Nowitzki's 34 points Saturday against New Jersey
made him the franchise's all-time leading scorer, passing Rolando
Blackman, cementing his status in Mavericks history.
Whatever he scores the rest of the season
will be just as relevant as the 16,644 points that preceded it. The
Mavericks remain seventh in the vise-tight Western Conference, going
into tonight's home game with the New York Knicks.
Since
two games before the All-Star break, Nowitzki has put together a streak
that looks similar to his MVP run last season. In his last 11 games,
Nowitzki is averaging 30.7 points and 9.2 rebounds while shooting 50.2
percent from the field.
"He knows we, as a team, have a
higher level to go to," coach Avery Johnson said. "There's a new
dimension for us to go to, and he knows we're not there yet."
Nowitzki allowed himself a bit of reflection after breaking the record Saturday night.
At first, he seemed like an odd choice to become the face of the
franchise. Not everybody loved the Mavericks' draft day trade with
Milwaukee in 1998 to secure the German teen. His game and his psyche
have been dissected when the Mavericks have fallen short in the
playoffs.
"Obviously, sometimes it flashes in your mind
that this has been an amazing ride," Nowitzki said. "Like I said, when
I first got here I don't think a lot of people believed I could score
1,000 in this league, let alone 17,000."
Nowitzki
admitted to mixed emotions. He's friends with Blackman, the Mavericks
director of basketball development. Blackman once served as an
assistant for the German National team.
"I hate to break
that record and take it from him," Nowitzki said, "but it's definitely
a great honor for me."
Blackman had prepared himself for what he viewed as inevitable. <div> <div id="newsnow"> <div style="width: 225px; padding-top: 8px;">
Dirk Nowitzki has averaged 30.7 points and 9.2 rebounds in his last 11 games. </div></div> </div> </div> </div>
"I saw that four or five years ago, that scoring at the pace he was
scoring and really having the opportunity to become a great leader on
this basketball team, that if he stayed here and stayed healthy ...
that he'd break the record," Blackman said.
His
prediction: Nowitzki will eventually propel the mark over 20,000
points</span>, elite territory achieved by only 32 NBA players.
Blackman considers himself fortunate to hold the Mavericks record for
so long, since he was the team's No. 2 option behind Mark Aguirre for
part of his career.
Brad Davis, a Mavericks broadcaster
and player development coach, knows the games of Blackman and Nowitzki
well.
Although Nowitzki plays power forward and Blackman was a prototypical '80s big guard, he sees similarities.
"Dirk is a great catch-and-shoot guy and Ro was one of the best in the
league, coming off screens, catching and shooting it," Davis said.
Factor the work ethic, too, Davis said. Blackman was famous for it. And
when Nowitzki was suspended last week for the game with Houston, he
still managed 75-minute workout that afternoon.
"He just loves being in the gym," Davis said.
Staff Writer David Moore contributed to this report.
Dirk's latest tally as of now is 18,002</span> points</span></span>Edited by: indianwhite