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Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki gets Dallas sendoff before upcoming Hall of Fame enshrinement

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Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki gets Dallas sendoff before upcoming Hall of Fame enshrinement


He stepped to the dais with a wide smile and a friendly wave, looking more like Mr. Congeniality than the soon-to-be Hall of Famer that the roomful of reporters and Mavericks employees came to see.

Then again Dirk Nowitzki has known many of those people for the better part of two decades, making Tuesday morning’s 30-minute gathering in the Mavericks’ Design District training facility feel more like a chummy catch-up than a news conference.

The tone was similar later Tuesday at the opening of Dirk’s restaurant, called Nowitzki, near gate C-37 at DFW International Airport. After sharing a few remarks, Nowitzki then essentially hung out on-air with his friends and 97.1 The Freak co-hosts Jeff Wade and Ben Rogers.

Tuesday amounted to a grand North Texas bon voyage to a visibly trim, rested and excited Nowitzki, 45, as he embarks Wednesday to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame weekend.

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The first big occasion is Friday’s tip-off Celebration and Awards Gala at the Mohegan Sun Casino Hotel. The main event of course is Saturday night’s Class of 2023 induction ceremony in Springfield, Mass., the birthplace of basketball.

Naturally, Dallas will be in his heart and among the focal points of his induction speech, given that all 21 of his NBA seasons were spent as a Maverick.

“It means, of course, a lot to me that it worked out that way,” he said. “But of course, I had no idea that it was going to play out like this at the beginning. I wasn’t even sure I’d stay for my whole rookie contract, the way things were going in year one.”

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Dirk Nowitzki’s Mavericks-inspired Hall of Fame jacket designed by Dallas company

That of course made his rise from gangly 20-year-old who averaged 8.2 points and 20% 3-point shooting to 2007 NBA Most Valuable Player to 2011 NBA champion to No. 6 scorer in league history such a testament to his overriding talent and will and work ethic.

Nowitzki doesn’t want to give away too many details of his induction speech, which he hinted will be roughly 10-to-12 minutes, but said it mostly will be about saying thank yous.

After learning in late March that he had been voted into the Hall, he sporadically has jotted notes about people and moments in his life and career that he wants to be in the speech, but mostly he wants to speak from the heart.

“I have sort of my script in mind and you want to kind of remind yourself, ‘OK, what’s next?’ ” he said. “Don’t forget anybody, like I forgot my sister [Silke] at my jersey retirement. I can’t let anything like that happen this weekend.

“We’ll see. These things are sort of hard to plan. My speech is sort of set, but I really don’t want to stare at the teleprompter that entire night. Some stuff will just come out and be spontaneous in the moment.”

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Retired Dallas Mavericks player Dirk Nowitzki speaks before his induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame this weekend during a news conference at the Mavericks Practice Facility in Dallas on Tuesday, Aug. 8, 2023. (Juan Figueroa / Staff Photographer)

On Tuesday Nowitzki revealed that he originally hoped to have three Hall of Fame presenters on induction night. Rules dictate that presenters must be Hall of Fame members.

He said that picking former Mavericks point guards and longtime friends Steve Nash and Jason Kidd to accompany him to the stage was a no-brainer. Nowitzki added that he hoped to also be presented by Don Nelson, his Mavericks coach from 1998 to 2005, but 83-year-old Nelson is unable to make the trip from Maui.

Nowitzki said that NBA rules eliminating hand-checking and discouraging bump-and-grind play in the post, coupled with Nelson’s creativity, “sort of played right into my hands.

“I think if I’d have gone to another team, maybe they would’ve bulked me up and maybe would have stuck me under the basket,” he said. “But Nellie just saw the game differently; always has. He was a mismatch master. He wanted me to shoot. He encouraged me to play my style.”

As with any athlete from any sport who’s ever given a Hall of Fame speech, Nowitzki knows the biggest hurdles will be discussing family members and others to whom he’s especially close.

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That could prove extra challenging in Nowitzki’s case. Along with parents Jorg and Helga, mentor Holger Heschwindner; wife Jessica and their three children; he’ll have in the audience at least 11 former teammates and Mavericks governor Mark Cuban, among other franchise friends.

And then of course Mavericks fans, the multitudes who always will adore him for, sure, winning that elusive championship, but also because of who and how he is, on and off the court.

The fans who, while not present at Nowitzki’s two Tuesday’s sendoffs, certainly were there in spirit – as will be the case Saturday night in Springfield.

When he returns to Dallas, it will be as forevermore Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki.

Twitter: @Townbrad

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    Mavericks’ Luka Doncic posts triple-double in Slovenia’s win over Montenegro
    Dirk Nowitzki’s Mavericks-inspired Hall of Fame jacket designed by Dallas company

Find more Mavericks coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.





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Dallas, TX

Sources: Giants’ DeVito expected out vs. Dallas

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Sources: Giants’ DeVito expected out vs. Dallas


New York Giants quarterback Tommy DeVito is expected to be out for Thursday’s game against the Dallas Cowboys because of his forearm injury and Drew Lock is expected to start in his place, sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Jordan Raanan.

DeVito is listed as questionable for the Thanksgiving Day game, but a source told ESPN on Wednesday that DeVito was considered a long shot to play.

He did not travel with the team to Dallas on Wednesday as he was undergoing further evaluation, the Giants said. The team, however, said it expected him to travel to Dallas later Wednesday.

DeVito took several big hits in Sunday’s 30-7 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He was making his first start of the season after the Giants released former starter Daniel Jones late last week.

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The Giants turn to Lock after bypassing him following the benching of Jones for DeVito. Lock spent the first 10 weeks as the backup, with DeVito as the third string/emergency quarterback.

Lock has a short week and no real practices to get ready for the matchup of NFC East rivals. He also will be playing behind an offensive line without its starting tackles. Andrew Thomas (foot) is on injured reserve and Jermaine Eluemunor (quad) was ruled out Wednesday.



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Dallas, TX

Colorado visits Dallas after shootout victory

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Colorado visits Dallas after shootout victory


Associated Press

Colorado Avalanche (13-10, in the Central Division) vs. Dallas Stars (13-8, in the Central Division)

Dallas; Friday, 9 p.m. EST

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BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Stars -140, Avalanche +116; over/under is 6.5

BOTTOM LINE: The Dallas Stars host the Colorado Avalanche after the Avalanche took down the Vegas Golden Knights 2-1 in a shootout.

Dallas is 13-8 overall and 4-2-0 against the Central Division. The Stars have a 4-2-0 record in games they score at least one power-play goal.

Colorado is 13-10 overall and 2-3-0 against the Central Division. The Avalanche have a 2-5-0 record in games their opponents serve fewer penalty minutes.

The teams meet Friday for the first time this season.

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TOP PERFORMERS: Matt Duchene has 12 goals and 14 assists for the Stars. Mason Marchment has five goals and seven assists over the last 10 games.

Cale Makar has eight goals and 22 assists for the Avalanche. Mikko Rantanen has eight goals and seven assists over the past 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Stars: 6-4-0, averaging 3.7 goals, 6.4 assists, 3.1 penalties and 8.2 penalty minutes while giving up 2.8 goals per game.

Avalanche: 7-3-0, averaging three goals, 4.8 assists, 2.6 penalties and 5.2 penalty minutes while giving up 2.9 goals per game.

INJURIES: Stars: None listed.

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Avalanche: None listed.

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.




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Kidd breaks the silence, gives first update on Luka Doncic’s sudden wrist injury

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Kidd breaks the silence, gives first update on Luka Doncic’s sudden wrist injury


The Dallas Mavericks’ bad injury and availability luck this season continued into Wednesday evening, as Dallas will be without Daniel Gafford, Klay Thompson, Dante Exum, and Luka Doncic against the New York Knicks tonight.

While no one expected Doncic and Exum to play as they are both out with wrist injuries, both Thompson and Gafford had a chance at playing. Thompson will be out for the second straight game with left foot plantar fascia, and Gafford is out with an illness.

This illness has been no joke for Dallas, as both Quentin Grimes and Dereck Lively II were listed on the injury report, but both are available against the Knicks.

The Mavs have found a way to win two of the three games that Doncic has missed due to this sprained wrist that he unexpectedly suffered against the New Orleans Pelicans last Tuesday, and Mavs head coach Jason Kidd gave the first update on Doncic’s status when it comes to the wrist injury on Wednesday night.

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“He looks good,” Kidd said at his pregame media availability. “Everything that has come back that he looks good and is getting closer to coming back.”

Kidd then continued to talk about how Doncic has been going through “individual workouts,” and everything that he has “heard or seen is trending in the right direction.” He went through a pregame workout at the American Airlines Center with his wrist taped despite being out, and this is a good sign.

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It’s typical for Kidd and the Mavericks to limit what they tell the media when it comes to players’ injuries, but the fact that Doncic is going through workouts and responding well is a good sign. Doncic has not been able to catch a break this season, as he has dealt with a calf contusion, knee contusion, and this wrist sprain over the last two months, and this week-plus off should help get him back to being 100 percent.

He didn’t even seem to be 100 percent with his knee when he injured his wrist against New Orleans, and him getting this time of rest could be huge for him in returning to playing at an MVP level. This wrist injury happened so suddenly against the Pelicans, and even Doncic didn’t know the exact moment it happened. He said that the pain started early on in the game, and it got worse as the game went on. Doncic dubbed his wrist injury as “nothing serious” in his postgame press conference from last Tuesday night, but his availability lately says otherwise.

This season for Dallas, Doncic is averaging 28.1 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 7.6 assists per game while shooting 43.5 percent from the field and 32.4 percent from downtown, and while his numbers are down, Kidd remains confident in his superstar. Kidd emphasized that Doncic is still “human” last week when asked about his slow start to the season, and even though Dallas is finding ways to win without him, his return is going to help take this team to another level.

His teammates miss having him on the floor with them, and the Mavs are a completely different team when Doncic is fully healthy and cooking with gas. It has been a while since Mavs fans saw Doncic fully healthy considering the downpour of injuries that slowed him down during the playoffs, and he and Kyrie Irving will have the chance to help push this team back to the top of the Western Conference once he returns from this wrist injury.





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