Dirk Nowitzki signs new deal with Dallas
July 7, 2017
The Dallas Mavericks have retained Dirk Nowitzki after declining a team option in his contract last month, signing the German basketball start to a new two-year contract.
The new deal sets up Nowitzki, 39, to join Kobe Bryant as the only two players ever to spend 20 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) with one franchise. Bryant spent 20 years with the Los Angeles Lakers before retiring at the end of the 2015-16 season.
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The terms of Nowitzki's two-year deal have not yet been released, but media reports in the United States say it is worth $10 million (8.8 million euros). A year ago, Nowitzki had signed a two-year deal worth $50 million in 2016, but the Mavericks declined its team option for the second year - worth $25 million - before the start of free agency on Jul
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The 7-foot (2.13-meter) Nowitzki, who was born in Würzburg, eclipsed the 30,000 career point mark last season, becoming the first foreign-born player to reach that milestone. He received the Teammate of the Year award at the end of the season in June.
Nowitzki was named the NBA's Most Valuable Player in 2007 and won an NBA championship with the Mavericks in 2009.
dv/msh (AP, Reuters)