Dirk Nowitzki officially confirmed what many have been suspecting all season – that his 21st NBA season will be his last. Amid all the road game tributes by opposing teams and Commissioner Adam Silvers' spate of going-away gestures during the All-Star Weekend,  the Dallas Mavericks topped it all off with a grand send-off in the American Airlines Center fitting for a franchise lifer.

Mark Cuban most notably, opened his speech by proclaiming that not only do they have a Mavs' job waiting for Nowitzki but also a statue that will trump all other statues.

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It's not a surprise given that Nowitzki is undoubtedly the best player to ever don a Mavs uniform and the main catalyst that brought a championship to North Texas, and if that isn't worthy of the biggest honor, it would be hard to define what is.

There are only about 14 statues displayed outside NBA arenas with the most recent being Shaquille O'Neal who shares the spot with five other Los Angeles Lakers' greats and potentially a seventh with Kobe Bryant likely to be inaugurated the same way. The 7-foot German's statue, however, could arrive sooner rather than later and it's safe to say that he's going to be number 15.

As for a ‘job', the Mavs have long provided post-career options for most of their players from roleplayers such as Eduardo Najera and Nick Van Exel to “Big Three” member Michael Finley, and the only question for Nowitzki's role is what capacity.