Kevin Durant praises Dirk Nowitzki after passing him on the NBA’s scoring list
Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant reached 31,562 career points Sunday to rise to sixth on the NBA’s all-time scoring list, passing Dallas Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki, who ended his career with 31,560 points in 21 seasons.
After the accomplishment in Houston’s 119-110 victory over New Orleans, Durant lauded Nowitzki on the podium, talking about the German superstar’s impact.
“Played against him on his route to his first championship, played against him the next season after they’re trying to defend their title, so we’ve had some real meaningful battles, not just regular-season games,” Durant said. “There’s times going into a series I hated Dirk, you know what I’m saying. I’m sure it was vice versa, and you know then for him to kill us in these series, it’s just so demoralizing playing against a player like that.”
Durant, in his 18th season, said he has tried to emulate Nowitzki’s impact off the court.
“I wanted to be that respected,” Durant said. “I wanted to be that revered by my teammates, by a city, by media, by everybody who watches the game. I feel like Dirk is the embodiment of that, and I try to emulate as much as I can all the great players. One of my trainers was good friends with Dirk ... so he learned a lot from him, and I was able to take some of [Dirk’s] stuff and incorporate into my routine. ... He means a lot to me, man.”
Nowitzki made video celebrating Durant that was shared by the Rockets on X. He started by joking he wasn’t happy about the two-time Finals MVP passing him.
“To me, he’s one of the purest, smoothest scorers the game has ever seen,” Nowitzki said. “A 7-footer ... with really a two-guard’s game. The shot-making, the off-the-dribble stuff, the off-balance stuff. There’s really nothing you can do to stop him one-on-one. He can always get a great shot up. That’s just how skilled he is, how long he is, how good his release is. It’s been incredible to watch his career.
“... So, congrats, KD. Keep it going, move up a couple more spots. Keep it up. Good luck.”
Nowitzki might not be the last NBA legend to be passed by Durant on the scoring leaderboard, as the Washington, D.C., native is only 730 points behind Michael Jordan for fifth place.
