In an appearance on ‘Stoner Sports Network,’ NBA legend Paul Pierce broke down an iconic interaction between Kevin Garnett and former Mavericks sharpshooter Dirk Nowitzki. In one matchup between the two legends, Pierce recalls when Garnett accused the foreign-born player of using a racial slur in German.
“We playing the Dallas Mavericks right, we got KG and Dirk Nowitzki playing and Dirk is on one right now,” said Pierce. “KG’s guarding him and I mean he’s killing KG and I’m like ‘damn.’ So I’m on the wing in the corner and KG’s guarding him at the elbow. Something happened and KG fouled him. And he got in Dirk’s face and said ‘you heard that?’ He said ‘he called me a n*gga.’ I said ‘Ticket I was right there he didn’t call you no n*gga. He said ‘Yes he did he said it in German!'”
Anybody who knows Dirk Nowitzki knows that he would never use that type of language and not even KG’s own teammate was buying those claims at the time. While that type of behavior was relatively normal for Garnett, it was unusual for him to get cooked the way Dirk did to him that night and it’s clearly something that was starting to get to his head.
Kevin Garnett Was A Ruthless Trash Talker
Perhaps more than anyone in league history, Kevin Garnett knew how to push buttons and he wasn’t afraid to cross the line if it sparked some kind of reaction. In fact, former NBA player Richard Jefferson once said of Garnett and Pierce that they were two of the “worst human beings of all time” for their reckless bully-like behavior on the court.
Famously, Garnett has said some wild things in the past about his opponents and even flapped his gums around Michael Jordan when he battled him during the early years of his career. As Garnett aged, his game didn’t hold up well but his heart and passion remained the same and it’s one of the many reasons why he continues to be a prominent figure in basketball culture today.
Dirk Nowitzki Was The Silent Assassin
While Dirk’s game was certainly loud and majestic, he didn’t do much talking on the court. Instead, he let his performance do all the talking, and, more often than not, it was more than enough to establish him as one of the best players in the world. In 2011, he was at his peak after beating LeBron James and the Miami Heat but that wasn’t the only time he’s crushed the dreams of his competitors.
In 21 seasons in the NBA, Nowitzki averaged 20.7 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game on 47.1% shooting. He retired in 2019 as a 1x Champion, 1x MVP, 14x All-Star, and 12x All-NBA player. While he completed a relatively modest run in Dallas, he proved himself against the best in the world and gave legends like Kevin Garnett, LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, and others a really tough time on the basketball court. Against Garnet specifically, Dirk has a really strong case being 23-17 in career matchups, including 3-0 in the postseason.
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