Nowitzki sheds walking boot, aims to keep playing
Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki shed the walking boot on his left ankle and said he isn't ready to declare that the 2018-19 NBA season will be the last of his career.
Nowitzki, who turns 40 next month, missed the final four games of the regular season after undergoing a surgical debridement of the ankle in early March. He said he is progressing on schedule and is not rushing his rehab, which could take much of the summer.
The 20-year veteran played through the ankle injury for much of last season, noting that while it wasn't painful, the issue did limit his mobility.
"It was blocking me from doing certain movements, especially the side-to-side stuff," he told the team's website. "Front to back, it was OK. Pushing off, that was just a problem there really all season.
"I will never run like I'm 20 again, but I'm hoping that the side-to-side stuff will get easier."
Nowitzki also said he is planning on suiting up next season while not ruling out playing beyond that, depending on how he feels on a year-to-year basis.
"I guess at this age you kind of take it one year at a time," Nowitzki said. "It sounds cliche, but that's how it is -- see how I come through (next year).
"I came through pretty good this year. I could have probably almost played 82 (games) if I wanted to."
If Nowitzki does play next season, he will become the first person to suit up in more than 20 NBA seasons with the same team, breaking the record he currently shares with Kobe Bryant. The team holds an option for 2018-19 to exercise the second year of a two-year, $10 million deal Nowitzki signed last offseason.
The big man averaged 12.0 points and 5.7 rebounds in 24.7 minutes per game across 77 starts this season.
Nowitzki currently ranks fifth in NBA history in games played (1,471), third in minutes (50,573) and sixth in points (31,187), leading LeBron James by 149 points for the active NBA lead.
--Field Level Media
