Paul George lauded Dirk Nowitzki, Dwyane Wade and the 2023 Hall of Fame inductees while sharing a story about the Mavericks legend on his latest podcast episode.
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This year’s Hall of Fame class is easily among the strongest to ever be inducted to the Naismith Memorial. Other than Wade and Dirk, the lineup also includes the likes of Tony Parker, Pau Gasol and Gregg Popovich.
Nowitzki, who played 21 seasons for the Dallas Mavericks and set the record for most games played with a single franchise, was a perennial MVP candidate during George’s formative years.
The German 7-footer changed the existing paradigm of power forwards and paved the way for stretch forwards to become mainstream. He also had the famed one-footed fadeaway jumper that seemed to go in every time.
Nowitzki led the Mavericks to 2 NBA Finals as well as their first ever NBA championship in 2011. As an MVP, Finals MVP and 14-time All-Star, Dirk was a shoo-in for the Hall of Fame.
Paul George talks about feeling bad for Dirk Nowitzki in his breakout game
Back in 2012, the Dallas Mavericks were attempting to return to the Finals after winning it all the previous year. However, they were missing a bunch of their veterans from the championship team and were clearly inferior.
By that point, Dirk Nowitzki was nearing 34 years of age and was visibly on the decline. Their championship window was effectively closing, and a regular season game against Paul George and co was a case in point.
Paul George had a phenomenal outing in the Pacers’ 11-point win. He scored 30 points on the back of 7 3-pointers. It was also the game he said he realized that Dirk himself was feeling his age:
“It’s funny, my first breakout game was against Dallas…I went for 30 points. Big game, felt great in Dallas with Dirk on the floor. And I ain’t gonna lie, I felt bad, ‘cuz this was the Dirk that was hobbling.”
“I remember I had like a steal or a long rebound and I’m running, (he’s) chasing me down. So it’s Dirk and me, it’s like a loose ball, I’m running to it, he’s hobbling to it.”
“And man, he was ahead of me (you can check this on YouTube), and I literally went right past him, easy layup. And I literally felt bad for him because he looked like he (was) hurt on the court.”
PG-13 would go on to establish his own Hall of Fame career
Drafted by the Pacers for his high floor as a two-way swingman, George has definitely come quite a long way. The 6’8″ forward finished 3rd on the MVP ballot in 2018-19 while playing alongside Russell Westbrook.
He’s also made several All-NBA and All-Star teams since 2013, despite a freak injury he suffered in 2014. George has become an increasingly well-rounded offensive threat over the years.
His absence from the first 2 games of the Clippers’ first-round series should undoubtedly be a matter of concern. They will have to replace his elite shooting with role players stepping up.
