Dirk Nowitzki is a Dallas Mavericks legend and a future Hall of Famer. However, if you told Steve Nash two decades ago that Dirk will pass Wilt Chamberlain on the all-time scoring list, he would have probably laughed you out of the room.

Nash, who participated in Nowitzki's celebrity tennis tournament and finished second, played with the German legend for six years with the Mavs before returning to the Phoenix Suns. Nonetheless, he never thought he'd see Dirk having the career he had.

He talked with Dwain Price of Mavs.com about how Dirk's career panned out. He was honest with his answer, giving him one of the most sincere compliments in the process.

“I don’t really think you can ever say a guy is going to win MVP, especially when he doesn’t come into the league with an immense reputation. I thought he could be an All-Star for sure, but I didn’t know he would go down as one of the all-time greats,” Nash said.

“He truly has become an historic player, not only for the Mavericks, but in the history of the game. Now, in a sense, it’s conceivable because of all the hard work he put in and you watched him progress year after year. But I know at the start I think it’s impossible to say, ’Yeah, I thought he would have the career he had because he was so unheralded.’”

Dirk Nowitzki averaged 20.7 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.4 assists in his 21 years with the Mavs. He won the 2011 NBA championship after putting on a memorable run against the Miami Heat.

Dallas fans will not stop lauding him as the greatest Maverick of all time.