UNCASVILLE, Conn. – Dirk Nowitzki is having fun being a father these days.
And he has a clear vision of how he wants his three children to be raised.
It will not be spending endless hours on a basketball court.
Nowitzki said that he’s a fan of a well-rounded youth, not one that centers on a specific skill, working every day to hone that skill, whatever it may be.
And he speaks from experience.
“I would always recommend young players these days to try a bunch of sports,” Nowitzki said during his Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame news conference. “To me, we over-specialize our kids way too early these days. Practicing four and five times a week when they’re 8 years old I think is way too much.
“I’m a complete believer of the opposite. Trying all sorts of sports, it helps you with the sport you want to be good at. Tennis was amazing for me, eye-hand coordination, footwork. And handball was a very rough sport so you had to use your body to get by people. I used all these other experience to help me later on in basketball.”
Nowitzki spent his formative basketball years under the tutelage of Holger Geschwindner, who stressed a well-rounded and, yes, academic lifestyle for Nowitzki. He learned to play the saxophone, listened to a lot of jazz and did all sorts of non-basketball-related drills to help give him a better handle on the game he loved.
Now, it’s time to impart that wisdom to his kids, Malaika, Max and Morris.
And it’s been happening passionately since he retired in 2019. Now, with his enshrinement Saturday night, Nowitzki feels he’s putting a lid on his playing career.
“I think honestly there’s just nothing else coming for my basketball career,” he said. “It was 21 years and the last few years there have been some beautiful awards with the street name, jersey retirements.
“But the Hall of Fame is the top of the top. The top of the mountain. So to me this kind of caps this first phase of my life. It’s been a heck of a ride. And so much fun chasing my dreams in the sport I love. This is sort of the end to it.
“There’s plenty of life left. We’ll see what else I get into. But I see this as the end of the first phase of my life.”
But seriously, folks: Gregg Popovich was asked what’s kept him coming back to the San Antonio Spurs for the last 27 seasons and the coach saw the opening for a punch line.
“Money.
“Money, money, money.
“I buy cars, clothes, anything.”
Jokes aside, Popovich said he’s grateful for his career and credited players for helping him stay motivated as much as it is the other way around.
“I think it’s just the competitive nature,” he said. “Most of us (going into the hall) are the same way. The competition is a thrill.
“The teaching is fun, especially when you get to see people grow. Not just week to week but year to year. You watch that growth on the court, off the court. And over time those guys become your friends. I find myself listening to them more than they listen to me, just because they’re young and their minds are active.
Hammon is a ‘star:’ Popovich has had Becky Hammon on his coaching staff for the last several seasons and Hammon missed Friday’s news conference because she had a game as head coach of the WNBA Las Vegas Aces.
That left Popovich to commemorate her career.
“I’m in love with her. I just have to admit that,” Popovich said. “She is a fiery, competitive, take-no-prisoners (person). And the first time I knew that was when I saw her play in San Antonio. She reminded me of my youth, chewing her gum out there. She was a wise-ass out there on the court, out there directing traffic. And she just ruled the whole gym.
“So a couple years go by and she was out for a year with injury. So I invited her in and she spent the year going to every meeting we had. I learned pretty quickly that she is a star, in every way, shape and form.
“Plus she drinks wine and she’s got a good sense of humor, so that’s a hat trick as far as I’m concerned. She’s fantastic.”
Even the tough years were fun: Nowitzki had a fabulous careers of highs and lows, but acknowledges that the last few seasons were rough for him from a physical standpoint.
He fought ankle and knee problems, but was determined to struggle through them.
“I spent hours on the training table just to get ready to play,” he said. “That took some of the fun away.
“But once the ball went up, I was still like a child. It was still fun to compete. I’m glad I held on for 21 years. It was a wonderful journey with some amazing people.”
Asked what his legacy would be, he said: “Probably just the ability to shoot on a 7-foot frame. That was really my strength. Of course, I could do more things, but people always remember me for my ability to stretch the floor. I was a scorer at heart.”
Twitter: @ESefko
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