Jae Crowder only has 88 assists in his young NBA career, and when it’s all said and done, these 88 will be mostly irrelevant.
Except for one.
To be clear, @swish41 is none other than Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki, whose 25,000th and 25,001th points came on the receiving end of Crowders 88th assist.
Nowitzki became just the 17th player in NBA history to reach the 25,000 point milestone, and is only the third active player in the club along with Kobe Bryant (4th) and Kevin Garnett (15th). He is also one of only nine players in NBA history with at least 25,000 points and 9,000 rebounds, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, Moses Malone, Karl Malone, Shaquille O’Neal, Elvin Hayes, Hakeem Olajuwon and Garnett.
He will likely continue to climb the points ladder as he closes out his illustrious career. Dirk trails the logo, Jerry West, by 184 points, Kevin Garnett by 266 point and Reggie Miller by 272 points.
If Dirk plays for another two seasons, it’s likely that he can work his way past Alex English (25,613), John Havlicek (26,395), Dominique Wilkins (26,668) and Oscar Robertson (26,710) and into the top 10 all-time.
Pretty impressive for a 7-foot German forward.
“I was just happy to get it over with and see the whole bench get up and salute me,” Nowitzki said. “That was a special feeling. Yeah, it was a great milestone, and like I said, once I look back on my career, this is going to be special.”
Nowitzki celebrated the historic milestone by shaving his grizzly beard that he promised teammates he would shave once the team reached .500.
But which moment did he cherish more?
As impressive as it may have been, Dirk will likely not be remembered for his beard, but rather for his scintillating 14 professional seasons (and counting). His coach, Rick Carlisle, summed it up best after the game.
His legacy’s intact, regardless of what happens,” Carlisle said. “Really, regardless of any other scoring milestone. He’s one of those 13 guys who have been a 10-time All-Star, Finals MVP, League MVP.”
Dirk has certainly amounted the numbers, accolades and trophy’s to ensure his entrance into the basketball hall of fame. But is he worthy of making it on the first ballot?
Only time will tell, but he still has some time to make his case.
Ben Baroff is a basketball journalist who blogs for SheridanHoops.com. Follow him on Twitter here.