Dirk Nowitzki is near the end of his illustrious NBA career as he's set to enter his 20th season in the league, which brought questions concerning his legacy.
With that in mind, former Dallas Mavericks guard Jason Terry recently told Dwain Price of Unifyfrisco.com that he believes that Nowitzki is a better player than Hall of Famer Karl Malone.
“Karl Malone never won a championship,” Terry said, “and to me, unless you win a championship and you put up the number Dirk has and you lasted as long as he has with the same organization, [Nowitzki] gets the nod for me personally.”
Malone is widely regarded as one of the greatest power forwards to play the game as he accomplished at any individual level throughout his 19 seasons in the league. He was a two-time NBA MVP, 14-time All-Star, earned 11 All-NBA First Team selections, two All-NBA Second Team nods, an All-NBA Third Team selection, three NBA All-Defensive First Team nods, and one NBA All-Defensive First Team selection. He also finished second all-time in league history with 36,928 points scored.
Malone was a game-changing talent that helped elevated the Utah Jazz into a powerhouse in the NBA through much of the 1990s that included a pair of NBA Finals appearances. However, Terry believes the lack of an NBA title diminishes his legacy a bit.
Meanwhile, Nowitzki helped lead the Mavericks to an NBA title back in 2011 while boasting a similarly impressive resume. He has an NBA MVP award, 13 All-Star Game selections, four All-NBA First Team nods, five All-NBA Second Team selections, and three All-NBA Third Team nods.
Beyond that, he helped revolutionize the game being a stretch forward that can be an effective offensive weapon from three-point range. Prior to him, it was a rarity to see a power forward score from the outside at a high rate as most of their work came from inside the paint. Terry's point of view may be a little biased given that he played with Nowitzki, but there is certainly a case to be made.
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