Don Nelson had a very important assignment in the summer of 1998. That year, Nellie had to decide which player the Dallas Mavericks should draft with their No. 8 pick. Nelson knew right from the jump that the Mavs should go for Dirk Nowitzki.
Taking a quick trip down memory lane, Nellie and his son Donnie teamed up to hide Nowitzki from other NBA teams ahead of the ’98 draft. At that point, Nelson was already convinced that the lanky German had the makings of an NBA superstar.
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Come draft day, the Mavs selected Robert Traylor but Nelson devised a plan to acquire Dirk’s draft rights. Dallas then traded for Nowitzki, who was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks as their 9th overall pick.
Admittedly, Nellie could’ve opted to trade for Paul Pierce at the time. However, he has already fallen in love with Nowitzki’s game and potential.
“He was the greatest 17- or 18-year-old or whatever he was that I’d ever witnessed,” Nelson said of Nowitzki. “But the best part was that Donnie somehow got the practices [for the European All-Star team that Nowitzki was playing on] to be in Dallas at the YMCA. And no one was allowed to go into those practices except Donnie and I. So for a whole week, I watched Nowitzki play. I hadn’t seen many players at a young age, but he was the most unbelievable player I’d ever seen at that age. I couldn’t believe what he was capable of.”
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“Paul Pierce was [available] there [with the ninth pick in the 1998 draft] and he would have been a great pick as well, but we still took Nowitzki because of the size and the things he could do,” he explained.
Nelson made the right decision with Dirk
As it turned out, Coach Nelson was right about Nowitzki. His prediction was precise, as Nowitzki, a seven-footer with a soft touch, presented a tough challenge to his matchups.
It didn’t take long before Nowitzki established himself as one of the most versatile power forwards in the league. In just his third season with the Mavs, Dirk was already averaging 21.8 points and 9.2 rebounds per game.
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Though Piece panned out as well, Nowitzki’s game was more diverse and unique. Nowitzki went on to become the face of the Mavs. In 2011, he led Dallas to its first NBA championship in franchise history.
Nellie saw the same thing with Steph
As he reflected on Nowitzki’s NBA career, Nelson couldn’t help but remember Steph Curry. Like Dirk, Steph was Nelson’s choice in the 2009 NBA Draft.
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Nellie sees many parallels between Nowitzki and Curry’s careers. Even though Nowitzki and Curry navigated different paths to success, Nelson is proud of both.
“I thought he was gonna be exactly what he turned out to be,” Nelson said in 2014. “He’s been a delight to watch, and the maturity and everything else that goes in on the development of a person, not just a player. I’m really proud of him. I said the same thing about Curry… Is there a better player than Curry right now? I don’t think so.”
Nowitzki’s legendary career speaks volumes about Coach Nelson’s exceptional ability as a talent evaluator. As for the Mavs, they realized how important it is to have someone who could spot a future star on the team like Nellie.
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This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Aug 29, 2025, where it first appeared in the Old School section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.