Dirk Nowitzki: 'I will always be a Mavs fan. But this trade really hurt'

Dirk Nowitzki: It was such a strange situation. I was standing in that empty stadium, and then he ran onto the court—in yellow. It was just an unbelievably bizarre moment for me. And of course, it’s going to take weeks and months before it starts to feel a little more normal. It’s a tough situation, but in my tweet, I made it clear—I will always be a Mavs fan. But this trade really hurt. And it will take a while before everyone processes it and moves on."

Source: YouTube

More on this storyline

Dirk Nowitzki: He could have signed a Supermax deal with the Mavs. You can only sign that type of contract with the team you’ve been with for multiple years. But after this trade, he lost that opportunity. He can’t sign the Supermax anymore, which means this trade could have cost him over $100 million. But at the end of the day, Luka isn’t someone who plays just for money. I don’t think this trade hit him hard in that way. As for whether he’ll stay with the Lakers—I think so. -via YouTube / March 17, 2025

Dirk Nowitzki on Luka Doncic trade: I was shocked too. That’s a good word for it. We were on a family trip, had been in Europe for a long time, even in winter, then traveled through Asia a bit. At the end of the trip, we were in the Maldives, just relaxing at the beach. It was literally the last day, and I was in my room, about to pack my things. Then suddenly, my phone exploded with calls and messages from all over the world. I immediately went on Twitter, read the news, and at first, I was just shocked—like everyone else. I don’t think anyone saw it coming that the Mavs would ever trade Luka. So for me, it was totally unexpected, completely out of nowhere. I was so stunned that I just put everything aside. We were supposed to go for a quick lunch with the family before flying out, but instead, I sat in my room for an hour, scrolling through X, trying to figure out if it was real. Some people were saying that the entire trade was fake, that Shams’ account had been hacked. It took a few minutes before it was finally verified. Then I just followed the reactions—every player was posting something about it. The entire league, the entire basketball world was in shock. -via YouTube / March 17, 2025

Dirk Nowitzki: Then, there were reports coming out. Of course, I immediately texted Luka. At first, he didn’t reply—understandable, he was probably a bit overwhelmed. In English, you’d say he had a lot going on. A day later, he finally responded. I think he was pretty emotional. He didn’t see it coming at all. And then I thought, it would be nice if I supported him at his first game. He hadn’t played for a while—he was injured himself. So, I flew to L.A. I just wanted to show him that our friendship still stands. We played together for a year—my last year—and I always tried to help him, be a mentor to him these past few years. I wanted to show him that I’m here for him, even though he’s somewhere else now. That we have a friendship, that I’m still there for him and his family. His father was there, as well as some of his closest circle. -via YouTube / March 17, 2025

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Dirk Nowitzki: 'I will always be a Mavs fan. But this trade really hurt'

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