Soon, but not too soon, it will be time for Dirk Nowitzki to join his peers, retire from basketball, and ride off into the sunset. Two of those peers, Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan, have retired in the last year. The way they retired was true to each’s career persona.
Without much surprise, Nowitzki thinks he’ll be going out more like Duncan than Kobe, via an interview with the Dallas Morning News:
You know, I loved the way Kobe went out … with a 60-point game? That’s so Kobe like. The whole arena was standing up the whole fourth quarter. So much fun to watch. But I’m more like a Duncan guy. More a quiet guy. I don’t need the limelight as much. Maybe not quite the just e-mail, Hey, by the way Tim Duncan is retiring. I thought that was a little low profile. Maybe there’s a little press conference or something. I don’t know, I don’t really want to think about it because I know it’s gonna come up soon anyway. I’m just gonna enjoy the last couple of years.
Nowitzki is deservingly being granted the opportunity to retire on his own terms, much like Duncan and Bryant. He signed a two-year, $50 million deal with the Mavericks in July, which is reportedly more than he requested. It says something that young assets on the team like newcomer Harrison Barnes still considers the Mavs to be Dirk’s team, which seems to remain the case until he does decide to hang it up. Duncan’s retirement was more subtle, which caters more to Dirk. Kobe’s 60-point finale is a rarity and probably only an effort that he could carry out at his age. No matter the circumstance, Dirk will earn his proper praise as the end draws nearer.
