During his 21-season career in the NBA, Dirk Nowitzki earned over $255 Million through his salaries alone. Despite his impressive earnings, the Dunking Deutschman is yet to settle his dues with his former teammate Dennis Smith Jr.
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During his appearance on the ‘Run Your Race‘ podcast, Smith Jr. called out the Hall of Famer for not settling their bet. “Dirk, you owe me 10 bands, bro,” the Brooklyn Nets guard joked. Nowitzki earned the dues during a race between himself and the 6’3″ Smith Jr.
“You know, we was on his a** one day talking about, ‘Man, ain’t no way you moving this slow.’ And he was like, ‘Who wanna race me?’ So, I don’t know who set it up, it might have been Wes [Wesley Matthews],” DSJ recalled.
Smith Jr., who the Dallas Mavericks drafted in 2017, was a young and explosive guard. Dirk, on the other hand, was never known for his burst of speed, and spent much of the 2017-18 season suffering from an impingement in his left ankle. As such, the race had to be modified in order to give the 2007 NBA MVP a fair shot.
“The race was, he start at half-court and I start at full-court and we race to the end. And I won! And he still ain’t paying me. So don’t make me come down in the whiskey lane bro, I need my paper bro,” DSJ shared.
Dennis and Dirk played together for the final two seasons of Nowitzki’s career. During that time, they seem to have built a good rapport— at least good enough for DSJ to speak highly of the Mavericks legend even when he’s owed money from him.
Dennis Smith Jr. got Dirk Nowitzki’s name wrong
Even before they became teammates, Dennis Smith Jr. knew of the Dirk Nowitzki. Dirk was already a champion and league MVP at the time who had popularized one of the league’s most unstoppable moves.
However, since his first name was never on the back of his jersey, Dennis initially thought his name was ‘Dirt’ Nowitzki. After the Mavericks selected him 9th overall in 2017, ESPN asked Smith Jr. to recount how he first heard of the franchise’s greatest player.
“Earliest memory of Dirk, is probably a year he was playing with Steve Nash. I kept hearing [about] somebody named Dirt – like with a T. So, I’m like, ‘Why is a dude named Dirt in the league?’”
Wisely, DSJ kept this anecdote to himself until the draft had already concluded. However, it surely must have been at the heart of some jokes in the Mavs locker room.
Smith Jr. played with Dirk (with a K) for a season and a half before Dallas traded him to the Knicks for Kristaps Porzingis and Tim Hardaway Jr. His stint with the Mavs would hardly be memorable, except for the handicap race he beat Nowitzki in.
