With all the talk of player that the Dallas Mavericks are trying to lure in, resident star Dirk Nowtizki will be around to see that. At least for the next two years until his contract is up.
Talk about Nowitzki's retirement somehow came out in the open but the German player made it clear that he intends to keep on playing at least for the next two years.
Nowtizki, who was drafted in 1998 by the Milwaukee Bucks but would immediately be traded to Dallas, has played for the Mavericks all throughout. He has been a key figure in leading Dallas to 14 NBA playoffs and was part of the 2011 champion team where Dallas surprised the Lebron James-led Miami Heat 4-2.
Having signed for a three-year deal last Summer, the 36-year-old Nowitzki plans to make the best out of his remaining years and hopefully deliver another championship before hanging up his sneakers. He is set to receive more than $8 million over the next two seasons and has made it clear that he is committed to finishing his contract.
With Big Dirk still in the fold, it remains to be seen what Mark Cuban has up his sleeves. There is talk that the Mavericks may pursue LaMarcus Aldridge and/or DeAndre Jordan during free agency as the Mavs try to make another push before the 13-time NBA All Star's contract ends.
By the time his contract ends, Nowitzki will be 38 years old. All points to an eventual retirement for the NBA's highest scoring foreign-born player and nothing could be sweeter than to end his career with an NBA title or two.
Of course, that all depends on who Nowitzki will have to play with. For now, it seems that only Chandler Parsons, Devin Harris and Gal Mekel have a lock at returning to the Dallas fold so it should be an interesting offseason for the Mark Cuban-owned squad.
