The Dallas Mavericks went from the Dirk Nowitzki era to the Luka Doncic era, with fans comparing the two European stars in Dallas since Doncic joined the NBA in 2018. In a recent comparison with Dirk, former Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban told Draymond Green that both he and Nowitzki think Luka is better.
“Yes. No disrespect to Dirk, he knows I love him to death. Dirty and I go way way back, but Dirk will be the first one to tell you that Luka is better.”
Mark Cuban on if Luka Doncic can surpass Dirk Nowitzki as the greatest Maverick of all time
"Dirk will be the first one to tell you that Luka is better" pic.twitter.com/8WbP96rokR
— Ishaan Bhattacharya (@IshaanBhatta) April 1, 2024
Doncic may be the more skilled player of the two, but what Nowitzki earned in Dallas were pure accolades. Outside of defensive teams, Nowitzki has basically every major accolade locked up, including the Finals MVP and regular season MVP.
He averaged 20.7 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 2.4 assists over his 21-year stint in Dallas where he left an indelible mark on the franchise that he still works with in the front office.
Luka has almost every accolade outside of defensive teams locked up, along with any accolade with postseason success. Doncic’s numbers are far superior to Nowitzki’s, with his 28.6 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 8.3 assists average. He is quite literally one of the greatest offensive players in league history so far.
But if Doncic doesn’t end up winning multiple MVPs or titles, the city of Dallas will have a hard time giving him the status as the GOAT Maverick over Dirk.
Mark Cuban Thinks Nowitzki Would Beat Doncic 1-On-1
Despite Cuban saying that Doncic could be a better player than Dirk, the former Mavericks owner doesn’t see how Doncic could have beaten Dirk in a 1-on-1 when asked about it a couple of seasons back, giving Dirk the advantage due to size and better shooting.
“I think Dirk because Dirk won’t miss. Just in a regular one-on-one game, I think I gotta go with Dirk. Dirk couldn’t stop Luka, but Luka couldn’t stop Dirk, and Dirk four years in (to his career) is a better shooter.”
I wonder if the answer would be different now, as Doncic has averaged over 30 points in the last two seasons. His offensive game has somehow gotten better, with Doncic becoming a more accurate shooter as well. Nowitzki has been singing Luka’s praises for years, even saying that Doncic was better at the age of 22 than Nowitzki was in his prime.
There’s no way to compare the pair in both their primes, but it’ll always be a fun thought experiment. Everyone can see that Doncic projects higher than Nowitzki, possibly among the top of the greats if he can deliver on expectations. His production is already in line with the greats. He just needs to add the wins.
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