Dirk Nowitzki: Mavericks to retire No. 41 jersey in Jan. 5 ceremony

Gilbert McGregor

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Dirk Nowitzki: Mavericks to retire No. 41 jersey in Jan. 5 ceremony image

No member of the Mavericks will wear No. 41 again.

The franchise Friday announced that it will honour "the greatest Maverick of all time," Dirk Nowitzki, in a Jan. 5 ceremony in which his No. 41 jersey will be raised to the rafters of the American Airlines Center.

The ceremony falls on the same night as the Mavericks take on the Golden State Warriors.

MORE: Nowitzki named to NBA 75th Anniversary Team

Nowitzki, who was selected by the Bucks with the No. 9 overall pick of the 1998 NBA Draft, was acquired by the Mavericks in a draft-night trade. After spending 21 seasons with the Mavericks franchise, Nowitzki retired following the 2018-19 NBA season.

His 21 seasons as a Maverick stand as an NBA record for the longest career spent entirely with one franchise, ahead of Kobe Bryant (20 seasons, Lakers), Tim Duncan (19 seasons, Spurs) and Udonis Haslem (19 seasons, Heat).

SIGHTS AND SOUNDS: Dirk's final game with the Mavs 

In addition to holding high regard within Mavericks' lore, Nowitzki is also regarded as one of the greatest players in NBA history, earning a spot on the recently-unveiled 75th Anniversary Team.

As the Mavericks are set to immortalize Nowitzki in January, take a look at his all-time standing in the history of the franchise and the NBA.

Dirk Nowitzki career retrospective

Dirk Nowitzki, MVP

​Nowitzki will be forever linked to the Mavericks' magical NBA title run of 2011, placing him as arguably the greatest international player in the history of the NBA.

It's hard to argue with some of the numbers:

  • Career averages: 20.7 points, 7.5 rebounds on .471/.380/.879 shooting splits
  • Mavericks all-time leader in minutes played with 51,368 (3rd in NBA history)
  • Mavericks all-time leader in total points with 31,650 (6th in NBA history)
  • Mavericks all-time leader in games played with 1,522 (4th in NBA history)
  • Mavericks all-time leader in rebounds with 11,489
  • Mavericks all-time leader in blocks with 1,281
  • 14-time NBA All-Star
  • 12-time All-NBA (4x First-Team, 5x Second Team, 3x Third Team)
  • 2011 NBA Champion
  • 2011 NBA Finals MVP
  • 2007 NBA Most Valuable Player

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Gilbert McGregor

Gilbert McGregor Photo

Gilbert McGregor first joined The Sporting News in 2018 as a content producer for Global editions of NBA.com. Before covering the game, McGregor played basketball collegiately at Wake Forest, graduating with a Communication degree in 2016. McGregor began covering the NBA during the 2017-18 season and has been on hand for a number of league events.