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The Dallas Mavericks set up one of the best basketball stories by trading up to draft Slovenian wonder Luka Doncic, as their 20-year international treasure, Dirk Nowitzki, likely will pass on the torch to his European heir to the throne during what is largely expected to be his farewell season in 2018-19.
While many feel the Mavericks are the team best-suited to handle a European prospect, like they did with Nowitzki two decades ago, truth is that the Real Madrid star is far more NBA-ready than Nowitzki ever was in 1998.
via Saad Yousuf of The Athletic:
“The reality is that Doncic is so much better prepared to make this jump,” said Marc Stein of The New York Times, who covered Nowitzki and the Mavs during his early days with The Dallas Morning News. “He’s played (and flourished) at the highest levels of club and national team basketball. The Mavs will get to have plenty of summer time with Doncic before training camp starts, whether or not he actually plays in Summer League games.”
Truth be told, not only is Doncic better equipped with the tools of the NBA's modern game, but he's also played for a higher level of competition, taking part in the second-most competitive league in the world (Liga ACB in Spain), while playing for one of the world's basketball powerhouses in Real Madrid.
Nowitzki played for DJK Wurzburg for four years before declaring for the NBA Draft, having gained attention from Spanish giant Barcelona before taking part on the Nike Hoops Summit, where he played against Charles Barkley and Scottie Pippen, putting himself on the NBA radar.
Doncic has played professionally for four years, even as a 19-year-old — an experience unmatched by any of his draftmates — while leading his national team to EuroBasket glory for the first time in the nation's history.
A plethora of moves off the dribble, a complete jump shot, and instinctual defensive abilities already make him a more complete player than Nowitzki, though he has much to learn from the longtime veteran during his first year in the league.
