It was an historic day Dallas Mavericks Forward Dirk Nowitzki. Not only was he named the NBA’s most valuable player, but he became the first player in franchise history to be so honored.
“Today is your day Dirk,” said Head Coach Avery Johnson.
Nowitzki wasn’t sure how to handle the day. “Its definitely a weird felling,” he said. “For me at this stage right now, its still a little hard for me to be happy because of the way the season ended, but this is an award for the regular season, that's the way I got to look at it.”
NBA Commissioner David Stern thought it was important enough to present the award himself, a milestone for the NBA since Nowitzki is the first player from Europe to receive the award.
“I'm here today to present this award to really the iconic elite athlete from Europe, who has not only learned how to play our game, but mastered it,” said Stern.
Guard Jerry Stackhouse, one of three teammates in attendance, was happy for Nowitzki, even if the Mavericks failed to win their first round playoff series.
“Obviously he's not the happiest about everything right now, because of how the playoffs ended, but I think over time, he'll see that he had a Helluva year,” Stackhouse said.
Said Nowitzki, “Its definitely a special day for me and my family, you know coming all this way from Germany where I grew up and being fan of this league, its definitely almost overwhelming for me.”
The Mavericks 67-regular season wins tied for the sixth best winning percentage in NBA history, but their collapse in the playoffs was monumental.
An emotional team owner, Mark Cuban summed it up in with tears. “You don't have to fit a certain role, you don't have to fit a certain model, but if you work hard enough and care enough, anything is possible, and you made so many things possible for me, and this city. And I'm sorry for getting emotional about it, but that's how special you are. thank you.”
There is only one way this could have been better for Nowitzki and the Mavericks and that's to accept the award prior to a playoff game. That didn't happen, but the bottom line is, he is still the league's MVP.
Nowitzki totalled 1,138 points, including 83-first place votes from a panel of 129 journalists. Twice-MVP Steve Nash of the Phoenix Suns, Nowitzki’s good friend and former teammate, finsihed second in the voting with 1,013 votes and 44-first place votes.
