Dirk Nowitzki Wiki: Wife Jessica Olsson, Retire, Net Worth, Family, Wedding

• Dirk Nowitzki is a German professional basketball player and power forward of the NBA's Dallas Mavericks.
• He won the bronze medal at the 2002 FIBA World Championship and the silver medal at the EuroBasket 2005 with the German national basketball team.
• He has won the NBA Championship title with the Dallas Mavericks in 2011 and was named the NBA Finals MVP.
• He has 13 NBA All-Star appearances and has set several of league records.
• His net worth is estimated to be around $140 million.

Who is Dirk Nowitzki?

Dirk Nowitzki is a German professional basketball player, who is widely recognized for winning the bronze medal at the 2002 FIBA World Championship in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA, as well as the silver medal at the EuroBasket 2005 in Serbia and Montenegro as a member of the German national basketball team. In addition to this, Nowitzki is probably best known for being the power forward of the the National Basketball Association’s (NBA) franchise the Dallas Mavericks, with which he won the NBA Championship title in 2011.

Dirk Nowitzki’s Early Life

Dirk Werner Nowitzki was born of white ethnicity under the zodiac sign of Gemini on the 19th June 1978, in Würzburg, then West Germany, the younger child of a former professional basketball player Helga, and a former professional handball player Jörg-Werner Nowitzki. He has an older sister Silke, currently involved with the NBA’s International TV. Originating from such an athletic family – both of his parents were members of German national teams in their sports – it is no wonder that Dirk himself has managed to make a successful career in professional basketball as well. Although initially excelling at handball and tennis, due to his height Nowitzki decided to switch to basketball, and at the age of 15 during his high school years at Röntgen Gymnasium Grammar School of Würzburg, joined the DJK Würzburg sports club.

Dirk Nowitzki’s Early Career

Nowitzki debuted for DJK in the 1994-95 Second Bundesliga season, and within a year had become a team starter for the 1995-95 season, regularly scoring in double digits. For his great performances, he was dubbed as the ‘greatest German basketball talent of the last 10 years’. By averaging 19.4 points per game during the 1996-97 season as well as with 28.2 points per game in the 1997-98, Nowitzki was named  German Basketballer of the Year by the German Basket magazine.

His great performances led him to participate at the Nike’s Hoop Heroes Tour, as well as at the Nike Hoop Summit where his talent was noticed by a vast number of scouts and talent agents, who were impressed by his shooting, ball handling and swiftness.

Dirk Nowitzki

Dirk Nowitzki’s NBA Career

Nowitzki’s professional basketball career really began in 1998, when he was chosen as the pick No. 9 overall by the Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA Draft, but was immediately traded to the Dallas Mavericks. However, due to a 1998-99 NBA lockout, the third in the league’s history, Dirk returned to Germany and to his home club DJK for which he played 13 more games before returning to the US. In his sophomore season, he was dubbed as the runner-up for the NBA’s Most Improved Player award, and was also selected for the NBA All-Star Sophomore team. During the following 2000-01 NBA season, Nowitzki started in all 82 games, averaging 21.8 points and 9.2 rebounds, which helped the Mavericks to reach the playoffs after 10 years of drought. In addition, he was also the first franchise player to be selected for the All-NBA Third Team.

Before the start of the 2001-02 season, Nowitzki signed a $90 million six-year contract with the Mavericks, becoming the second-highest-paid German sportsperson ever, after the seven-time Formula One World Champion Michael Schumacher. Later that year, he was named as the European Basketballer of the Year by the La Gazzetta dello Sport magazine.

In the 2002-03 NBA season, Nowitzki led the Mavericks to the Western Conference Finals, but which they lost to the San Antonio Spurs, while during the 2003-04 season, he changed his play and switched to the position of center, but as still the franchise’s top performer with 21.8 points and 8.7 rebounds per game, Nowitzki earned his place in the NBA All-Star Game, as well as another All-NBA Third Team.

All these performances helped Dirk Nowitzki to become one of the Dallas Mavericks’ cover faces, and earned him a spot at the All-NBA First Team at the end of the 2004-05 NBA season. In the course of the next several seasons, he was consecutively selected for the NBA All-Star games, in addition to several All-NBA First Teams, while in 2006, Nowitzki won the NBA Three-Point Shootout champion’s title.

Despite being injured through the middle of the 2010-11 NBA season, he still managed to help his team reach the 2011 playoff, and led by Dirk, the Mavericks defeated the Portland Trail Blazers, Los Angeles Lakers and the Oklahoma City Thunder before facing the Miami Heat in the finals. After winning four of six games, the Dallas Mavericks were crowned with the 2011 NBA Champion, and Nowitzki, who averaged 27.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per game, was named the NBA Finals MVP, receiving his champion’s ring in January 2012.

In July 2014, Nowitzki and the Mavs signed a $25 million three-year contract, while in July 2017 he re-signed a $10 million two-year extension with the franchise. With the start of the 2018-19 NBA season, Dirk Nowitzki became the NBA all time record-holder for the most seasons played at the same club – this is his 21st with the Dallas Mavericks.

In his professional basketball career in the NBA to the present day, Dirk Nowitzki had added several important accolades to his professional portfolio, including 13 NBA All-Star appearances. and has also set several of league records – he is currently No. 4 for the most games played, No. 7 on the NBA’s All Time points scored chart – currently 31,230 points and counting – as well as the No. 5 on the defensive rebounds list. With all these achievements, this 7 ft 0 ins tall German athlete is considered to be one of the greatest power forwards in the history of the NBA, and who has led his Dallas Mavericks to a total of 15 NBA playoffs so far.

Dirk Nowitzki’s German National Team career

During his ‘tenure’ in the German national basketball team which lasted from 1997 and 2015, Dirk Nowitzki made an indelible mark not only in the German, but also European and international basketball scene as well. He was the top scorer of the EuroBasket 2001, while in the following year he won his first medal with his team, a bronze medal at the 2002 FIBA World Championship, being the top scorer and named as the tournament’s MVP as well. At the EuroBasket 2005, Nowitzki led Germany to the tournament’s final, winning the silver medal after loosing to Greece. He was once again the tournament’s top scorer and dubbed the most valuable player.

In addition, Nowitzki also participated at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, China, as well as at the EuroBasket 2011 and EuroBasket 2015 tournaments. He was also named as the Euroscar European Basketball Player of the Year five years in a row between 2002 and 2006, the 2005 Mister Europa European Player of the Year and the FIBA Europe Men’s Player of the Year in 2005 and in 2011.

Dirk Nowitzki’s Personal Life

Interested in Dirk Nowitzki’s private life, aren’t you? Well, between 1992 and 2002, he was in a long-term relationship with his high school sweetheart Sybille Gerer, while in the mid-2000s he was engaged to Cristal Taylor, with whom he allegedly welcomed one child.

In 2010 Nowitzki met Jessica Olsson and the two soon began their relationship which was crowned with marriage in July 2012. Dirk and Jessica, who is a twin sister of Swedish footballers Marcus and Martin Olsson, have welcomed three children so far – a daughter named Malaika born in July 2013 and two sons, Max and Morris born in March 2015 and November 2016 respectively. With his family, Dirk Nowitzki resides in Dallas, Texas, USA.

Apart from being one of the greatest players in the history of the NBA, Dirk Nowitzki is also a great philanthropist – he is the founder of the Dirk Nowitzki Foundation, a charity organization with the main focus on fighting poverty in Africa.

Dirk is also active on several popular social media networks, including Facebook and Twitter, amassing a total of over 6.2 million fans, as well as on Instagram where his official account – @swish41 currently counts 615,000 followers. You can also follow him through his official website http://www.swish41.com/.

Dirk Nowitzki’s Net Worth

Have you ever wondered how much wealth this 40-year-old NBA superstar has accumulated so far? How rich Dirk Nowitzki is? According to authoritative sources, it is estimated that the total of Dirk Nowitzki’s net worth as of early 2019, revolves around the quite impressive sum of $140 million, acquired through his 21 year-long professional basketball career with the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks, and abundant with accolades. Nowitzki’s wealth includes assets such as the $200,000 worth luxury supercar Audi R8.

Olivia Wilson

Olivia Wilson is currently a reporter for AffairPost based in London, United Kingdom. Prior to joining AffairPost in September 2018, she was a entertainment reporter. Olivia studied journalism at Cardiff University, graduating in 2010.

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