This is his 19th season. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 info fans don't know, management doesn't know, maybe even he doesn't know, in the days to come, whether he will wear a suit or a white and blue shirt more often, and he doesn't know when the "30,000 points" hanging over his head will touch the pin spring and draw a complete end to his career.

Another fact is that his peers, gone almost. Nash the year before, Kobe Bryant and Marion last year, Garnett and Duncan this year; Next year? Pierce is sure, how long can Carter and Terry, two old buddies, last longer?

No one can say no. Dirk said that looking back in 1998, he was a 20-year-old from Würzburg, and he could never have imagined that he would spend nearly 20 years in the NBA and spend half of his current life in a city.

Back in 1998, he was already being targeted by scouts from various teams, and he was just around the corner when he entered the NBA and played as a main player. But in those days when information was relatively closed. There is no complete commercial packaging team, and the only thing that accompanies him is Holger, who is like a master and a father - he is good at projection training, but he doesn't know too much about the world.

He's from Germany, and it's not the era when European players came in big swings – it's only after he arrived. What about the seniors? Schramf, who is 15 years his senior, has only played seven games on the court; Teammate Bradley? Born in Germany but returned to Utah as a child, I didn't cross paths with him before that. When he first arrived, Nowitzki had no relatives, and he only knew that everyone was hopeful about him, but he was taught to practice speaking more English and eliminate communication barriers, in addition to playing well.

He was already shy, and basketball was not the top sport in Germany. Like many hot-blooded comics, Dirk is like an exotic wonder boy who suddenly appeared, waiting for his new world, magnificent and wonderful, but too vast to digest for a while.

Thankfully, he made friends as soon as he arrived.

The Mavericks drafted Traylor with the No. 6 pick, then sent to the Bucks in exchange for the No. 9 pick for Dirk, and got the No. 19 pick Garrity. Then he traded Garrity for a future first-round pick in exchange for Steve Nash, a four-year-old who could only play third guard in the Suns.

This was Dirk's luckiest encounter: when he first came to the United States, he was a stranger and didn't dare to explore it alone; Nash, who was born in South Africa and grew up in Canada, from Santa Clara University, is a playful optimist. Two young people with very different developments quickly became friends, and Nash took him to explore all the fun places in Dallas, teach him English, play tennis, run and swim together, and spend their youth together.

Nash, Nowitzki, and later Nahula, a Mexican, and Wang Zhizhi were added. These are the only young people in their early twenties who are regarded as the banner of the movement in their own countries. They don't necessarily know how much expectation they carry and what comes with it. But at least led by a Canadian country guy, three strangers had a good start to their careers.

It's Dirk's luck, but it's more than that. When Cuban bought the team a year later, the Mavericks moved into the American Airlines Center, and since then they have started a strong journey of 16 years and 15 playoffs, and he should be glad that Michael Finley, the core of the team, is such a loyal guy, not only superb skills, but also willing to help his younger brother solve problems. The troika, led by Cuban and Nelson Sr., became the signature of Texas.

However, it is not deliberately brought over a long time, but the most unbearable thing in competitive sports is the double pressure of performance and years. Although Kuban did not hesitate to tear off a few checks, his combat power on paper could not be completely transformed into strength. Dirk has grown beyond expectations, and the team's offensive focus is going to have to struggle to adjust. In particular, although Nash and Dirk have a good personal relationship, it is difficult to form a more fluid cooperation outside of the fast break on the court, and the shortcomings on the defensive end cannot be compensated. Nash's departure was inevitable - he would have to leave to free Dirk. As for the rare outbreak of a second spring after the age of 31, it is only what everyone who loves Nash, including Dirk, really expects.

Salary cap, luxury tax. Finley ended up being used in a tempting pardon clause. In addition to the distribution of the ball, Howard's growth, and the fact that Terry and Starkerhouse also need to shoot, is the macro layout of management. So in 2005, at the age of 27, he was finally pushed to the core and began to become the backbone of a team.

From this point on, he could no longer play under the instruction of his brother, or rather his brother, as before. To be a hero, you must first be lonely.

You know, those people come and go, and it's far beyond his control. But the weal and woe of this team will fall on his shoulders. There are so many personnel changes, and naturally there are also coach changes. All he can do is adapt slowly and play every game.

The team's focus has made him a consistent All-Star, All-Star and MVP, but it has also made him saddled with soft eggs and withdrawn duties. Yes, in this movement where American heroism is prevalent, no one cares that you are quiet by nature, and no one cares about your inner monologue. Superheroes have their own growth trajectories, but people just love to watch them fight their way to the top.

He experienced a long period of self-doubt: he was intercepted and killed by his brother in '05; The 06 finals were reversed; Black Eight in '07. Not many people were willing to excuse him, and it was deafening to find out the real bane of the different time periods - in fact, he didn't have many loyal fans at the time. People prefer to decide the result in a clear and concise way: you are the ace of the team, so you have to be responsible.

Dirk also understands this, and at this time he is used to thinking about problems in an American way. But he is surrounded by his teammates, mentors, and the owners and fans who have high expectations. You have to explore the road yourself, and no one will lead you away.

He had Terry by his side, a friendship that would follow in years of hardship and battle; Harris and Barria, who grew up, seemed to him to be just little brothers, just as Finley had brought himself; But Howard, Daniels, and Dampier are teammates, but they don't have more intersections. Different upbringing, preferences and styles make it impossible for them to be buddies who are close to each other - they still have a tacit harmony on the field, and off the field, it is something outside of work.

More and more either/or thinking makes people forget that there is a middle ground - in addition to liking and disliking a person, there is also a category called "dislike", which is not liked or hated, and we are ordinary people, we are colleagues and co-workers. may not necessarily rise to the level of a good brother of the iron buddy, but it is also not an opponent who regards each other as fierce rivals.

The Western media are naturally familiar with that, Avery Johnson is a little selfish, Josh Howard is not necessarily too careful, and Dirk doesn't know at all. But finally one day, they were pushed to the opposite side. Who knows who's gambling?

This was the second time Dirk had hesitated. After three years of miserable endings, he did not get the relief of his confidant, but received negative comments from his coach. It seems to have become a trick of going through the motions. He had never been involved in locker room politics, so he was at a loss when things hit his head.

Fortunately, he still has Cuban, who has always supported him. In those difficult years, I deduced the repetition of changing lineups, failing, and continuing to get up again and again. You may not have experienced Dirk's transformation again and again, adapting to a new group of teammates every year, changing to a new style of play, and the individual offense tends to be inexplicable, but there is no way to go further. I also don't understand whether Kuban's stubborn insistence is really kept.