Official Dirk is Great Thread

[GermanDunk]

Hm, Dirk , fat. Those words somehow don´t match. I didn´t watch sports recently due to soccer season is over, so i obviously missed that show. But it should be possible to rewatch it.

[mavErika]

How come nobody has mentioned Dirk's selection to the "all-decade-team" by stat-geek Justin Kubatko yet (which comes with the highest rating of all players)?

http://www.basketball-reference.com/blog/?p=2997

It's subject of one of today's donuts on db.com and I'm sure many have read it already, but somebody has to post it, right?

All-Decade Teams: The 2000s

Posted by Justin Kubatko on July 24, 2009

Since we're nearing the end of another decade, I thought it would be interesting to come up with All-Decade teams for the 2000s. I know that technically the decade is not over yet, but the NBA has a split season, and since we've already crowned the 2009 NBA champions it seems to me that the 2008-09 season is a good breaking point.

Rather than choose the teams arbitrarily, I wanted to come up with a method to select the teams. I decided to use a weighting scheme similar to what Doug Drinen of PFR uses. Here's Doug's description of the method:

My opinion is that most people mentally rank players by counting all the players' seasons, but weighting their best seasons more. In order to mimic that, I've defined each player's approximate career "value" to be:

100% of his best season, plus 95% of his 2nd-best season, plus 90% of his 3rd-best season, plus, ….

So, for two players with the same career [value], the one with the higher peak will be rated a little higher. And junk seasons at the end of a player's career count for almost nothing.

In order to find each player's "value" for a particular season, I decided to add his regular season Win Shares to his post-season Win Shares. I also tweaked Doug's weights slightly. Since we're dealing with a period of 10 years rather than entire careers, a player's best season gets a weight of 1, his second-best season gets a weight of 0.9, his third-best season gets a weight of 0.8, etc. This will help to prevent players who may have missed a season due to injury or were drafted later in the decade from being penalized too harshly. I also decided to mimic the All-NBA voters and not make fine distinctions at each position, so a particular team might have two power forwards rather than one small forward and one power forward.

OK, that's enough background. Here we go with the first team…
All-Decade First Team
G Kobe Bryant 88.2
G Chauncey Billups 76.1
F Dirk Nowitzki 95.4
F Tim Duncan 91.5
C Shaquille O'Neal 86.1

I have a good feeling what the two most common reactions to these results are going to be, so let me tackle them now:

Reaction #1: How can you have Chauncey Billups over Steve Nash?

Here is a comparison of their per game statistics for the decade:
Player G MP FG FGA 3P 3PA FT FTA ORB DRB TRB AST STL BLK TOV PF PTS FG% 3P% FT%
Billups 712 32.5 4.7 11.2 1.7 4.4 4.4 4.9 0.5 2.6 3.1 5.9 1.0 0.2 2.0 2.1 15.6 .422 .396 .891
Nash 753 33.7 5.8 11.8 1.6 3.7 2.9 3.2 0.6 2.6 3.2 9.1 0.8 0.1 3.0 1.7 16.2 .494 .436 .905

Aside from the big advantage Nash has in assists, their per game statistics are quite similar. However, when you consider that Nash's teams never finished lower than 7th in pace factor, while Billups's teams were usually near the bottom of the league in pace, most of Billups's per game numbers are actually better than Nash's.

There's also the matter of playoff performance. Billups was on seven straight teams that reached the conference finals, a remarkable achievement. What happens if we remove playoff performance from the equation? Nash comes out ahead by the slimmest of margins, 62.0 to 61.9. However, it did not seem right to me to exclude playoff performances because (a) they do matter and (b) it would be silly to tweak the method just to reach a pre-determined result.

Reaction #2: How can you have Dirk Nowitzki over Kevin Garnett?

In my opinion, Nowitzki, although thought of highly by most people, still manages to be underrated. Consider:

* Nowitzki earned a decade-best 137.6 Win Shares during the regular season.
* Nowitzki finished fifth in the decade with 17.4 playoff Win Shares, but while Nowitzki played in only 97 playoff games, no one above him played him in fewer than 133 games.
* Nowitzki is an almost perfect blend of productivity and efficiency. Among players with at least 400 games played during the decade, he had the 15th-highest usage percentage, the 8th-lowest turnover percentage, and the 6th-highest offensive rating.
* The Mavericks have won 50 or more games nine consecutive seasons, including seasons of 60 and 67 wins after losing two-time MVP Steve Nash. The one constant during this streak? Nowitzki.

None of this is meant to slight Garnett, who I think is a great player. I just think - and this system happens to agree - that Nowitzki was a little bit greater.

Moving on to the second team…

Jason Kidd and Shawn Marion made it to the third team, maybe Kidd should have been rated higher. But it's always good to hear some well-known voices defend the greatness that is Dirk!

[mavs777]

I got a boner...

[Dirkules41]

OMG, Dirk with the highest rating of all players! And nearly every comment is hating on him!

[dude1394]

http://blog.southlemon.com/?p=549


Off-Season Profile: Dirk Nowitzki

James
Dirk, not your typical power forward

Dirk Nowitzki- PF -Dallas Mavericks
Born June 19, 1978 Germany
Drafted 9th overall, 1998
Career Averages: 22.7 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 2.7 apg
__________________________________________________ __________
Pencil Dirk Novitzki in for another First Team all NBA selection. He is a revolutionary seven footer whom every team tries to copy. Every time a seven foot player has a decent jump shot, they attempt to convince the world that they have the next Dirk.


The problem is that there is only one.


His combination of shooting touch and above average rebounding makes him a one of a kind player. The fact that he worked so hard as a teenager to get to this level is sometimes overlooked. Other guys his size are just not willing to work that hard, they lack his intensity and desire for greatness.


I see his stats staying about the same this year. Around 24-26 ppg, 9 rpg with maybe an increase in assists to about 4. With Shawn Marion now with the team, he has someone to pass the ball to. Someone who knows how to run the floor. I see a lot of fast breaks ran with one of those two guys taking the ball down and hitting the other as they drive down the lane.


Basically I am excited for the German born player. I think this could be his best NBA season overall, even more successful than his MVP season of 2007. Marion’s great defense will allow this team to run more often. Throw in Jason Kidd and this team should look a lot like the Lakers of the 1980’s.


He did have a couple of off years the last two seasons in 3 point percentage, look for him to get more open shots and reverse that trend.


Also I do not see the situation with his girlfriend affecting him. He is too much of a professional for that. In fact, if the child she is carrying is his, look for him to be more focused. I don’t know why, but he looks to me like someone who will love being a dad and will use his child as motivation.


Off Season Profile

[dude1394]

Nice photo at db.com on dirk in Africa. That should be a hammer he's holding. Lot's of photos if you clickthrough the story.
http://www.dallasbasketball.com/fullColumn.php?id=2003

[alby]

grow that hair out buddy

[mavErika]

Originally Posted by dude1394

Nice photo at db.com on dirk in Africa. That should be a hammer he's holding. Lot's of photos if you clickthrough the story.
http://www.dallasbasketball.com/fullColumn.php?id=2003

yeah, the pic with the gloves and helmet is looking funny too!



I found some more on this guy's twitter http://twitter.com/bdameris :


DHoward and crew try soccer as South African National team goalie Ithuleng Khune looks on. (Kick was high and wide)

Africa Crew: including Radmonovic, Maxiell, and of course Mutombo. No one paid for their time. We should be proud.

Dream Frontcourt?: Dirk, Bosh, DHoward. Dirk showing Superman his version of the jump hook! (It went in).

Dirk donated $15,000 on the spot & helps build a Habitat house in Soweto. 1st house in 3 generations for family.

NewsFlash: Dirk loses 3-point shootout to one of the African campers! Over the hill?

DHoward leads in the middle of African dance circle. Dirk does his best to feel the beat.

[dude1394]

Out for Justice!

http://www.slamonline.com/online/nba...ut-for-justice

[sefant77]

Damn i hope Dirk and Bosh connected and had a great time. Im sure Dirk at least did a funny joke in small round whats with him coming home 2010...

[alby]

Why stop at Bosh, get Dwight too

[DirkFTW]

But also, 7' tall.

[dude1394]

http://dimemag.com/2009/09/5-players...em-on-my-team/

5. Dirk Nowitzki - It’s impossible to count the number of times when I’ve looked at Dirk Nowitzki and wanted to punch him in the Hassellhoff. However, there is no getting around how brilliant of a player he is and the sick things he is able to do on the basketball court. The guy has unparalleled offensive skills for his size, is a genuinely good person, and I’d absolutely love him if he were a member of my team.

[dude1394]

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/page2/59802672.html

Pure Fantasy: Nowitzki powers to No. 1
[IMG]http://media.mysanantonio.com/images/215*328/p2_Kendrick_Centerpiece_0919.ART0_GDM69FDA.1_MAGIC _MAVERICKS.14893541.jpg[/IMG] MATT SLOCUM/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Dallas' Dirk Nowitzki shot 47.9 percent from the floor last season, 35.9 percent from 3-point range, and 89 percent from the line.

Dirk Nowitzki finished last season as one of the most productive players in fantasy basketball, averaging 25.9 points and 8.4 rebounds per game. And while Dallas added Shawn Marion over the offseason, one thing is clear — the Mavericks are Nowitzki’s team. Here’s a look at Nowitzki and the rest of the power forwards.
The rankings
1. Dirk Nowitzki, Mavericks
2. Chris Bosh, Raptors
3. Amare Stoudemire, Suns
4. Tim Duncan, Spurs
5. Pau Gasol, Lakers
6. Antawn Jamison, Wizards
7. Rashard Lewis, Magic
8. Troy Murphy, Pacers
9. LaMarcus Aldridge, Blazers
10. Kevin Garnett, Celtics

[dude1394]

And we know why(or who).
http://basketbawful.blogspot.com/200...-per-game.html

6. 2005-06 Dallas Mavericks: Here's where things get wonky. Like the 1999-00 Clippers and 1989-90 Nets, these Mavericks averaged 18.0 APG. They finished with only five more total assists than the Knicks squad that ranks third on this list. However, they won 60 games, which gave them the third-best record in the league behind the Pistons (64-18) and Spurs (63-19). Moreover, the Mavs went all the way to the NBA Finals...which they might have won if not for a few dozen iffy foul calls that went in Dwyane Wade's favor. So, basically, they bucked every trend associated with teams who don't pass the ball.

[DevinHarriswillstart]

I love that Dime magazine picture. Dirk looks older but cooler. He has a dark and serious look like "don't mess with me." I really hope he doesn't cut his hair because I much prefer it long.

[dude1394]

Yea I like it long also but I do understand why he cuts it short, it's a whip having to keep it out of your eyes. I don't want to see any Mike Miller action.

He's one of the few dudes who has naturally curly, full blond hair also. It gets blonder the longer it is. It's a great look but I expect it's a hassle on the court.

[GermanDunk]

Interview with Dirk and ... a report: 20 years Baywatch. Coincidence ?


WELT Newspaper http://www.welt.de/

Dirk

- is in WÜ pracicing with Holger
- was in Southafrica doing social work
- was on Safari in Butswana
- Nowitzki mansion maybe for sale

[iella]

Dang that ball looks tiny in his hands...

[Dirkgreatness]

Dirk in Berlin to reveal his own wax figure.....

These are of him preparing for his wax figure to be made:











And his wax figure's unveiling:




More pics of the unveiling here.

[SMC0007]

Thats cool!

..but Dirk do some damn curls or something maybe a hint of bicep muscles.

[GermanDunk]

Can we add a Terminator tag ?

[quietsavant]

Extremely great video to watch. Do yourself a favor and watch it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_nkc...eature=related

[mavErika]

great video, but dang, just discovered it myself a few days ago. Was hoping for a new one. And you need to be tough to stand it, as you'll lust for more.

edit: not exactly what I meant, but actually there is more... on youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZ1nlWD39_E&feature=fvw

kind of a later and extended version, longer, but not as emotional. I liked your link better.
And while I'm at it, a really old(2003) cnn interview with Dirk:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOKHo..._embedded#t=43

[GermanDunk]

Haha " Steve looked weird with his hair "...

[dude1394]

Originally Posted by quietsavant

Extremely great video to watch. Do yourself a favor and watch it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_nkc...eature=related

Damn dude...THANKS!!! That fired me up. Two of my favorite guys in sports and it shows in just about everything they do. I do think cubes made a huge cluster when he let the fiery leader go. The dirkster needs someone to be that type of leader, he's going to kick ass on the court.

Makes me even more happy that I've been there for this ride.

And for all the mavs fans who boo'ed little stevie....stevie says f'em.

[quietsavant]

Originally Posted by dude1394

Damn dude...THANKS!!! That fired me up. Two of my favorite guys in sports and it shows in just about everything they do. I do think cubes made a huge cluster when he let the fiery leader go. The dirkster needs someone to be that type of leader, he's going to kick ass on the court.

Makes me even more happy that I've been there for this ride.

And for all the mavs fans who boo'ed little stevie....stevie says f'em.

Greatest moments: @ 3:00 nash says dallas mavericks one fan at a time. Dirk and Eddie najera sitting looking at him.
3:17 to like 3:35 Dirk talking up his game on camera and nash in the foreground rolling his eyes when dirk goes "im pretty much an all arounder" man i miss those days

[fluid.forty.one]

AWESOME video

[SMC0007]

1) Nash departure

2) The rip job in the finals by the refs

3) Otis Smith pants'd us on the Gortat



My top 3 franchise moments of discomfort (in my heart area).

[nowhereman]

Originally Posted by SMC0007

1) Nash departure

2) The rip job in the finals by the refs

3) Otis Smith pants'd us on the Gortat



My top 3 franchise moments of discomfort (in my heart area).

Really? Not getting an unproven center because his team unexpected matched him as an RFA is worse than losing Finley, or getting eliminated by Golden State, or being eliminated at home by a Steve Kerr barrage a game before Dirk came back, or watching Nash drill a 3 in transition to force overtime against us, or the refs not calling the intentional foul on antoine wright, or signing doug christie?

That's f*cked up.

[SMC0007]

Originally Posted by nowhereman

Really? Not getting an unproven center because his team unexpected matched him as an RFA is worse than losing Finley, or getting eliminated by Golden State, or being eliminated at home by a Steve Kerr barrage a game before Dirk came back, or watching Nash drill a 3 in transition to force overtime against us, or the refs not calling the intentional foul on antoine wright, or signing doug christie?
That's f*cked up.

1) I didn't say top 10.


2) I don't care who the refs sign or don't sign.







Gortat isn't proven of course but I wasn't expecting that schiester to match and it caught me offguard...

[twelli]

Originally Posted by nowhereman

Really? Not getting an unproven center because his team unexpected matched him as an RFA is worse than losing Finley, or getting eliminated by Golden State, or being eliminated at home by a Steve Kerr barrage a game before Dirk came back, or watching Nash drill a 3 in transition to force overtime against us, or the refs not calling the intentional foul on antoine wright, or signing doug christie?

That's f*cked up.

....and the loss at LA when the Lakers came back from 50 points down...

[nowhereman]

Originally Posted by SMC0007

1) I didn't say top 10.


2) I don't care who the refs sign or don't sign.







Gortat isn't proven of course but I wasn't expecting that schiester to match and it caught me offguard...

1. You're right. The #3 thing on your list would not crack my top 10 list.

2. How else would you list those things in that order? Don't hate on the oxford comma.

Back to the topic on hand: Check out this badass Dirk vid from his rookie season:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pp8ziTfhepc

[Pongo]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w27KbPfH1oM

Young Dirk doin' some work, showing off his at least semi-impressive hops

[mavErika]

Back to the topic on hand: Check out this badass Dirk vid from his rookie season:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pp8ziTfhepc

that's a great video, and even better: this guy has also interesting footage about Dirks time in Germany before his departure to the NBA, but it's in German:

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w27KbPfH1oM edit: damnit you, beating me twice)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGTH0...e=channel_page


this Dirk-mix contains the famous suit-buying scene (at around 1:40):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuf6b...eature=related

and this guy catched a lot of his international play on tape(sadly, some of the videos don't work anymore):
http://www.youtube.com/user/Nowitzki...l?blend=3&ob=1

for instance:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkkK2...e=channel_page

he also made this Dirk-mix, which I highly recommend:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-30Z...e=channel_page


2009 Real NBA Talk with Dirk Nowitzki:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4cyl...ture=quicklist

Also the fresh rookie-Dirk footage encouraged me to enlarge my sig a few pixels, although quality is still crappy.

[mavErika]

this article is just balm for the souls of media-annoyed mavs fans:

If what Nowitzki doesn't know has hurt him, he'll never show it
Sep. 30, 2009
By Jan Hubbard
Special to CBSSports.com

DALLAS -- Dirk Nowitzki should have serious conversations with important people in his life. It seems that those closest to him keep forgetting to provide him with vital information.

For example, someone should have told Nowitzki that players usually get their hair styled before media day, when all the local television stations and print photographers show up.

Nowitzki strolled into the Mavericks' practice gym Monday looking like a combination of a biblical character who had just ridden his camel across the Sahara, and a burned-out surfer dude who hadn't experienced the business side of a comb in months.

Nowitzki called his shoulder-length hairstyle a "summer-beach" look and said, "I'm definitely planning on getting it cut soon."

Despite the charming ragged look, the 2007 MVP looked refreshed from a summer that featured nine weeks off. For the first time in many years, Nowitzki did not play for the German national team and spent much of the summer relaxing and the rest of it getting in shape.

Part of his relief resulted from extricating himself from another situation where someone forgot to tell him something. In this case, it was former fiancée Cristal Taylor, who forgot to tell Nowitzki while living with him that there were eight outstanding warrants for her arrest.

Taylor was arrested at Nowitzki's Dallas home after Game 2 of the Dallas-Denver conference semifinal series in May on a theft of service charge for refusing to pay a bill for dental work. She was later sent to prison for five years for forgery and stealing. She also claimed to be pregnant, but that was later disproved.

The experience was a gut-wrenching one for Nowitzki, and it might have adversely affected a lesser player on the court.

But if there is one misconception about Nowitzki -- and it is certainly promoted by the otherwise entertaining crew at TNT -- it is that he lacks toughness.

Let's make this clear: Dirk Nowitzki is not a woofer or a fighter. Neither is Tim Duncan. Nor Yao Ming. Nor any number of others.

Nowitzki is also the complimentary sort. He doesn't disparage others. He has a habit of telling the truth, which apparently violates some sort of playground ethic.

The TNT fellows have been on him several years, calling him soft, and they certainly have not distinguished between him being mentally or physically soft.

Perhaps they need a little help in examining Nowitzki's purported softness.

After the Mavericks lost Game 1 of the Denver series, Dirk praised the defensive talents of Kenyon Martin, Chris Andersen and Nene. The TNT guys went nuts, with Chris Webber saying "Dirk is scared of a defender." Kenny Smith said that "it feeds the stereotype that this guy is playing a little soft."

Nowitzki went out that night, fully aware that his fiancée was about to be arrested and in complete emotional shambles because of his off-court life, and was so scared of the defenders that he scored a mere 35.

The Taylor story went public the next day. Nowitzki's "softness" continued with 33 points in Game 3, 44 in Game 4 and 32 in Game 5.

After the absurd TNT tirades and a devastating personal experience, the "soft" Nowitzki averaged 36 points, 12 rebounds and made 53 percent of his shots in the remainder of the Denver series.

And he still said nice things about the Nuggets, who won the series 4-1.

Mavericks assistant Rolando Blackman was born in Panama and moved to New York when he was 7 years old. He grew up in the asphalt jungles of the city and was such a success at Kansas State and with the Mavericks and Knicks in the NBA that he had a park named after him in Brooklyn.

He also served three years as an assistant coach for the German national team, and in his opinion, Smith, Webber and Charles Barkley need to do a little homework. Blackman is so passionate on the subject of Dirk that he talks non-stop for minutes at a time.

"It all goes down to the cultural aspects," Blackman said. "What people have to understand is Dirk is intensely competitive and intensely confident. But the way he shows it is not the way an American street kid will show it. I grew up in that lifestyle just like Kenny, but Dirk shows his in a completely different way. It's hard for all the jungle warriors to understand that kind of confidence he exudes and how he goes about it because it's just completely different.

"In the German culture, everything is internal. It's not that are not feeling it or thinking about those types of things, it's just that they don't display it in an arrogant or boastful way. You can't tell me and you won't tell me that Dirk is not an intensely confident, competitive player. But it's almost like everybody is waiting for him to have this macho-man display and a street-cred moment and then everybody will leave him alone.

"It's a funny situation with him that they just will not accept how great he is for dropping 25 and 12 every single night and whupping every player who tries to guard him. It's like you can show that greatness but you have to be a macho man to do it. He just doesn't play the macho side of it."

And then Blackman gets even more animated, saying:

"But he puts plenty of foot in people's butts."

It is unlikely that anyone can say it better than that.

Nowitzki and the Mavericks are excited about flying under the championship radar this season. They enter 2009-10 with few people expecting them to compete for the NBA elite.

They believe they have improved with the additions of Shawn Marion, Tim Thomas and Drew Gooden.

Jason Kidd is back, and at age 36, he is still a world-class athlete in tremendous physical shape.

Josh Howard missed 30 games, was not healthy for most of last season and is recovering from ankle surgery. But the Mavericks are optimistic he will be fully recovered.

Jason Terry is 32 and the returning Sixth Man Award winner, so the Mavericks will again have quality play off the bench.

The Mavericks will start the year with seven players who are 30 or older and critics are already dismissing them because they are "too old." But with Nowiztki at 31, the Mavericks have about a three-year window left to compete for a title, and they are not interested in rebuilding. They will compete with their veterans, and they are realistic -- hopeful, but not cocky.

"We're just going to have to see how it works out during the season," Nowitzki said. "I think we're all going to fit in well, but we'll wait and see how it goes. A lot of the great teams got better and made great moves, so we're going to have to see how it works out. I think we can be right there."

Once again, it shows that people are withholding information from Nowitzki. By "right there," he meant in the championship hunt. Apparently no one has told him that it can't happen.

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/story/12289918

certainly some sig-worthy stuff in there, but I just added a different line to mine.
But it's hard to withstand Ro's comment about what Dirk does to people's butts.
Did that sound gay? Made rhyming it even worse?
And is this not the right time to admit how much I love his long, blonde hair?

[dude1394]

It is sad when the idiots at TNT are the "media".

[sefant77]

"Nowitzki strolled into the Mavericks' practice gym Monday looking like a combination of a biblical character who had just ridden his camel across the Sahara, and a burned-out surfer dude who hadn't experienced the business side of a comb in months."

Nailed it

PS: Since years i mute the sound the second they switch into the TNT studio.

[mavErika]

PS: Since years i mute the sound the second they switch into the TNT studio.

Certainly that would be the best for my nerves too, but at the same time I want to know what they have to say about the Mavs. They're not "the media", but, without looking at the numbers, they do have a wide range and reach probably a lot of people with their playoff-coverage who usually don't watch or read about Mavs ball, and some of them may be mislead by the "nba expert"-label to listen to what they have to say and take it without the necessary grain of salt.

[Spurred1]

The TNT crew is there for entertainment, nothing more. They are perceived as part of the the media, but most people who follow basketball/NBA know that TNT isn't a solid source of information, just good for some laughs. Barkley often comes off as terribly ignorant of a great many things-I really can't tell if his buffoon act is real or pretend, nor do I care.
Rarely do they say anything positive about the Mavs, but seem to search strive only for negativity regarding the team. They made a big deal out of Nowitzki's comments on the Denver defense,which was ridiculous. Webber has no place to comment-he's very soft.