Dirk Nowitzki tops 29,000 points in the NBA
February 22, 2016
Nowitzki hit the milestone on Sunday, scoring 18 points and seven rebounds as his Dallas Mavericks beat the hapless Philadephia 76ers 129-103. The 37-year-old German eclipsed the 29,000 mark with a jump shot from behind the three-point line, which gave the Mavs a lead of 71-59.
"This means that I have been around a long, long time, and that I have made the odd basket here or there," Nowitzki said afterwards. This moves the Würzburg native to number six on the all-time NBA scorers' list.
Apart from the milestone, Nowitzki, who led the Mavs the NBA title in the 2010/11 season, stressed how important the win was for the team's confidence, after Dallas had lost five of their previous six matches.
"Gradually some frustration was setting in after we had lost a few close games that we should have won," he said. "So we really needed this win."
With the victory, the Mavericks remain sixth place in the Western Conference and on course for a berth in the playoffs.
Nowitzki, who has played his entire career with Dallas since breaking into the NBA in 1998, now has 29,008 points, well behind Wilt Chamblerlain in fifth, with 31,419. Unassailable at the top of the list is Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with 38,387 points.
pfd/rd (dpa, SID)