Comments (0) Best Maverick - 2005

Dirk Nowitzki

We would've given this award to Shawn Bradley, but he remains 7 feet, 6 inches of suck. Besides, in a season in which he lost his head coach and best friend, Dirk Nowitzki found his spot among the NBA's elite. With longtime teammate Steve Nash in Phoenix and the only coach he'd ever known (Don Nelson) in retirement, Dirk led the Mavericks to a 58-24 record and the second round of the playoffs. A 7-footer able to both ram dunks and rain 3-pointers, Nowitzki finished in the top 10 in almost every offensive category and became the first Maverick named to the All-NBA First Team, meaning he is one of the five best basketball players on the planet. In other news, the Mavericks and the Dallas Observer are both 25 years old. Coincidence? Or merely a shameless plug tying us to anything remotely successful in Dallas? Discuss amongst yourselves.

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Dirk Nowitzki