- Dirk Nowitzki is one of the greatest players
in NBA history.
And he had some legendary playoff performances
for the Dallas Mavericks.
The crown jewel, winning finals MVP
as the Mavs took down Miami's big three
to win the 2011 NBA championship.
But before that triumph,
in the middle of Dirk's Hall of Fame calibre career,
at what could've been its peak,
came a valley so low, so surprising and embarrassing,
that some wondered if he'd ever get over it.
You can't truly appreciate Dirk's glory
without plumbing the depths that preceded it.
This is Dirk Nowitzki's worst playoff game.
(tense string music)
May 3rd, 2007.
Oakland, California.
Game six between the Mavericks
and the Golden State Warriors.
The excitement was palpable.
The eight seeded Warriors were at home
looking to close out what would be
one of the greatest upsets in sports history.
A first round victory over the mighty Mavs
who were reigning Western Conference champions,
owners of a league best 67 regular season wins
and employer of the likely MVP, Dirk.
These Warriors were an undersized,
fast paced, band of misfits.
Coached by former Mavs innovator, Don Nelson,
and lead on the floor by the delightful Baron Davis.
Golden State got really hot late in the regular season
after acquiring Stephen Jackson and Al Harrington
who would key a front court, lacking in height
but overflowing with buckets.
But even still, no one genuinely expected them
to challenge these Mavs until game one
when Davis looked far better than Nowitzki
who shot just four of 16.
Golden State won in a blowout and suddenly the possibility
of a historic upset was in the air.
The favorite and the underdog split the next four games
with Dirk finally looking like himself
down the stretch of a do or die game five Mavs win.
And to continue dodging disaster in this game,
Dirk would have to step up in a thunderous road atmosphere.
The building was practically shaking.
20000 people in bright yellow We Believe shirts,
really did believe Golden State
could become the first NBA eight seed
to beat a one seed in a best of seven series.
And the crowd was studded with celebrities.
Snoop Dogg was there, Carlos Santana was there,
Niners legends like Ronnie Lott and ... Alex Smith were there.
You weren't there, but me and Dupree were.
This place was nuts but if there were any moment
for Dirk to bust his little playoff opening slump
and show why he was the MVP front runner it was here.
With everyone watching and everything at stake.
He opened things up with a brick.
In fact, it was Jerry Stackhouse keeping the Mavs alive
with some corner threes while Dirk missed all four
of his early field goal attempts
and just threw the ball away
at the end of the first quarter.
You would think the seven foot sweet shooting Dirk
could feast on the smaller Golden State defenders,
but Dirk's old friend Nelly had his players fronting
and doubling the big guy, doing everything
to annoy him and force the ball out of his hands.
After missing his first eight shots,
Dirk finally just threw a fronting Stephen Jackson
to the ground to get an open look.
Dallas was down just two at half,
but Dirk was having a rough, rough night.
It made one wonder if he'd ever whiffed this much
in so important a playoff game.
In 2001 Nowitzki shot just three of 13 for nine points
in a blowout game one loss to the Spurs,
but that was Dirk's first ever playoff run
and that kicked off a dominant Spurs series victory.
It hardly mattered.
In game six of 2003's first round matchup
with the Blazers, Dirk shot two of 11
for just four points in 28 minutes,
but he picked it up in game seven and Dallas won the series.
The Heat were able to turn the 2006 finals around
in part because of Dirk's dismal two of 14 outing
in game four, but he got to the line a lot
in that game and played better the rest of the series
even as the Mavs fell apart around him.
And Dirk would go on to have more stinkers.
In the 2011 Western Conference finals
he shot seven of 21 and turned the ball over seven times.
But the Mavs would win that game, and the series,
and eventually the championship,
he would more than make up for that one bad outing.
But in 2007, the Mavs were the best team in the NBA,
Dirk was in his prime and all of that would be for naught
if he couldn't pull himself together and lead Dallas back
from a surprising three two series deficit.
But to open the second half, he was really pressing.
The Warriors were still sending swarms of smaller defenders
when Dirk got the ball so his first semi-clean look
at the rim produced a super rushed attempt.
The Warriors started to pull away in the third quarter
and Dirk was struggling to even possess the ball
against the smaller and more mobile Jackson.
It was grim, and it was made extra grim
by how useless Dirk looked on the other end.
Avery Johnson coached a top five defense
but Dallas still couldn't figure out
where to put Dirk against all those shooters.
Johnson either put the Mavs in the a zone
or had Dirk sag way way off his man
over ball screens which backfired horribly
because he was guarding Jackson,
who seized the open looks
to reach five of five from downtown,
then six of six, then seven of seven.
When Dirk got switched onto an ever smaller player,
he got embarrassed.
Baron Davis's hamstring was messed up
and he still torched Nowitzki, twice.
Clumsy rotations left Dirk to get crammed on
by Matt Barnes or to frantically close out
against Mickael Pietrus who killed him.
It took until the fourth quarter,
when the Warriors had basically put the series away
for Dirk to hit his second basket of the game.
The announcers foresaw a pretty miserable off season.
- [Announcer] Unless there is a dramatic turn,
this will be just a horrendous off season
for Dirk Nowitzki and the Mavericks.
- Dirk stayed out there for the last few minutes
of this blowout, bricking one more three
in front of the delirious crowd.
The game ended.
He gave his former coach a hug.
His final scoring line in 38 minutes,
two of 13 from the field,
O of six from downtown, eight points.
Fewer points than Maurice Ager scored in 12 minutes.
Dirk wanted to disappear but he couldn't do it for long.
Because even though the NBA's MVP award
is based on regular season performance,
the announcement and trophy ceremony take place
in the middle of the playoffs.
And it took just days for reports to surface
that Dirk was indeed the 06-07 winner.
On May 15th, while the Warriors were in the middle
of a series against the Utah Jazz,
Dirk was summoned back to American Airlines center
to receive his trophy.
So how does it feel, Dirk?
- It's a great day.
Great honor to be here.
- [Narrator] Okay, is that it?
- Still a little sad about how things happened
in the post season.
- [Narrator] Yeah, I'm sorry, man.
It's hard to watch Dirk try to keep his enthusiasm up
in this press conference and I can't really tell
whether Mark Cuban was choking up
because he was proud or just really sad.
- He's the guy that hurts so much
when things don't go the way he wants.
And that's what makes him an MVP of this league.
- That awkward scene makes you wonder
if other regular season MVPs have fallen that short
in the playoffs, and in fact they have,
but not quite like Dirk.
Here are the other league MVPs
whose teams didn't make it past
the first round of the playoffs.
Kareem won MVP in his first year in LA,
but that was a transitioning Lakers team
that didn't even make the playoffs.
The Rockets lost in the first round
after Moses Malone's first two MVP seasons
but those were two middle of the road Houston squads,
neither loss was a huge upset.
The same goes for the Thunder
who were a 6th seed when MVP Russell Westbrook
failed to lead them out of the first round.
So of these MVPs who didn't win a playoff series,
Dirk really sticks out as a surprise.
He's the only one who played a league best season
on a league best team, then fell short.
Obviously enough time has passed
that Nowitzki can appreciate this honor.
He was the first Maverick and the first European player
to win the award.
But that loss to the Warriors was so painful
and so fresh when Dirk found out he'd won MVP,
that he initially didn't want the award.
And after he sucked it up and accepted the trophy,
he got as far away from basketball as possible.
Dirk spent a huge chunk of his summer
wandering the Australian Outback with his mentor.
Drinking by a campfire, asking himself why me?
He didn't shave or shower, he slept in hostels and cars
and sometimes he literally just let himself drift
out to sea.
Back in the States, people called him a choker,
soft, not a real leader.
John Hollinger even snuck him into his list
of players who might be on the decline.
And for a few years, the disappointments kept coming,
until 2011, when Dirk won it all.
That shredded all doubt that he was a Mavs legend,
one of history's greatest players,
and perfectly capable of leading a team all the way.
- [Announcer] The emotions of Dirk Nowitzki.
What he's always dreamed of, hoping to have another chance.
- [Narrator] It ensured the giant sweet shooting German
would have a legacy of glory and dignity.
That the lowest point of his career wouldn't define him.
And thank God for that, because this night
in 2007 was one of the most unexpected,
exciting outcomes in basketball history.
But someone had to be its victim,
and more than anyone else, that was Dirk Nowitzki.
(tense string music)