New York Knicks forward Kristaps Porzingis congratulated Dirk Nowitzki on becoming the sixth NBA player to score 30,000 regular-season points.
On Tuesday night, Dirk Nowitzki added another milestone to his Hall of Fame career when he reached 30,000 regular-season points. Dirk did it in vintage Dirk fashion, with a fadeaway over a helpless defender.
History. #Dirk30k pic.twitter.com/UVGyKrMsFl
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 8, 2017
Many people around the league thanked the 7-foot German and one of them was New York Knicks forward Kristaps Porzingis.
Congratulations @swish41!! Thank you for making a path for all european players coming after you. What an achievment! #30k
— Kristaps Porzingis (@kporzee) March 8, 2017
When Porzingis entered the NBA two years ago he drew immediate comparisons to former Phil Jackson player Pau Gasol.
Once we actually got a chance to see Porzingis play we realized his game was more like that of Nowitzki. It’s a narrative that the Latvian fed into by claiming Dirk was his basketball idol growing up.
Nowitzki praised Porzingis after a Nov. 2016 game when the 21-year-old busted out the classic Dirk fade than stared the legend down.
“He’s not only a 7-footer but he is like 7-4 out there with an 8-5 wingspan,” Nowitzki said. “He’s got an incredible touch. He can move. He can dribble. He can put it on the floor more now. He is going to be a great player in this league for a long, long time.”
Porzingis hopes to work out with Dirk next summer after discussing the idea this past offseason. For the Knicks’ sake hopefully, it works out.