Cuban Hopeful Nowitzki Will Play In 2018/19

Dirk Nowitzki is off to a slow start this season, with most of his numbers at their lowest mark since his rookie year. However, Mavericks owner Mark Cuban tells Tim MacMahon of ESPN that he’s hopeful this won’t be Nowitzki’s last season suiting up for the Mavs.

“I hope so,” Cuban said when asked if he thinks Nowitzki will return for the 2018/19 season. “I think there’s a really good chance he is [coming back], because he wants to break the record for years with one team and be that one guy. Not many people have that opportunity. … He’s still having fun.”

In more than 1,400 career NBA regular season games, Nowitzki has averaged an impressive 21.6 PPG and 7.8 RPG with a .473/.381/.879 shooting line. So far this season, his averages have dipped to 10.1 PPG and 5.1 RPG with a .414 FG%, though he’s still making nearly 40% of his three-point attempts.

While Nowitzki acknowledged that his health and the state of his body will dictate when he retires, the 39-year-old expressed a desire to play one more year after 2017/18, noting that the Mavericks’ place in the standings wouldn’t affect his decision, MacMahon writes. Dallas is 2-12 so far this season, matching the Hawks for the NBA’s worst record.

Nowitzki is currently in his 20th season with the Mavs, tying Kobe Bryant‘s record for most seasons with a single NBA franchise. If he can return for the ’18/19 season, the German big man would hold that record on his own.

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