In 2019, on April 10, the NBA said goodbye to two pillars of its history. Dwyane Wade and Dirk Nowitzki, two players whose greatness undoubtedly reaches the top 20 in an NBA which nevertheless has no shortage of players with immense records. A look back at a damn beautiful and terribly moving double evening.
That night the two elders lost, but they were celebrated so much that it was as if they had won. The Heat and the Mavericks are not affected by the Playoffs that year, the evening will be festive whatever happens. As we suspected, for our two stars, this season will be their last. It was announced for D-Wade, it was felt for Dirk.
Facing the Wunderkind, the Spurs, on their way to the Playoffs. A derby as the 1,522nd and final match of your career, there are worse things, right? Our big German starts crying from the Spurs tribute video made for the occasion. Ah, don’t start Dirk, or we’ll start too. The match will be without suspense, the Spurs accumulating a big lead from the start. Dirk still sends us some beautiful mid-range as he knows how to do so well. 3-pointers, post play, fade-away. With this versatility, Nowitzki reminds us how he forever transformed the possibilities of offensive play in the NBA.
For his last shot, of course he will send us his Dirk One-Leg. In the last minute of the match, Gregg Popovich yells at Drew Eubanks to let the tall blond shoot, but that doesn’t change anything for Dirk. He sends anyway. String. Our legend finished this match with 20 points and 10 rebounds, with very moist eyes.. So much for the last game of the 2007 MVP. Who would have thought, 20 years ago, that this tall, slender European would bring the city of Dallas its first and only NBA championship title? He will have come a long way.
His final points.
What a ride. Thank you Dirk. pic.twitter.com/n8Deawl4aW
— Dallas Mavericks (@dallasmavs) April 11, 2019
For D-Wade, we are facing the Nets. With Dwyane Wade too, the relationship with the team is special, very special. Drafted in Miami, he completed exceptional careers there to win three championship rings within the Florida franchise. And at the age of 24, he won his title of MVP of the Finals, a phenomenon of precocity. For his last match, as for so many others, Dwyane gives his all. A triple-double, what better way to finish well? 25 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists. The ultimate offering going to Udonis Haslem, his long-time teammate. If that isn’t magnificent.
The game against the Nets wasn’t particularly close, but once again, when the final whistle blew, no one cared about the score on the scoreboard. The Flash’s eternal sidekicks, LeBron James, Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony, were all there to celebrate their pal. The first of the quartet to retire, but perhaps the one who means the most to one franchise. Dwyane Wade had the opportunity to show us that yes, he was retiring, but that he was still capable of playing at a great level. And what a great thing it was to see, during these 947 games in the Miami Heat jersey.
4 years ago today, Dwyane Wade played his last game in a Heat uniform
25 Pts
11 Rebs
10 Asts
— Playbook Sports (@PlaybookSN) April 10, 2023
Destiny therefore meant that our two artists bowed out the same evening. These two magnificent players, with completely different games, had faced each other for years, in the regular season, and even in the NBA Finals. And here they are saying goodbye at the same time. Two players who probably didn’t like each other much when they were both at the top, but who nevertheless developed a great respect for each other over the years. It had to end like this. On an evening of legend(s).
This is how in one and the same evening, two players who served as the greatest player in the history of their franchise retired. A bittersweet ending, defeats in teams who no longer played anything and who were no longer at their former level. But after all, hadn’t these two won enough in their long and successful careers?
2024-04-10 21:31:52
#Dwyane #Wade #Dirk #Nowitzkis #final #NBA #match
