Back in 2014, Carmelo Anthony was close to signing for the Dallas Mavericks to replace Nowitzki, when his new contract negotiations were put on hold. A curious prospect, Melo’s career could have looked starkly different. However, he decided to continue his legacy with the Knicks, eventually finishing as one of the best scorers the league ever saw.

A minor footnote on the careers of two absolute mavericks of the game, the two crossed paths recently, both having hung up their boots. On May 13th, Doha was graced by Basketball royalty.

Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki joined his on-court rival and now friend, Carmelo Anthony, on stage to kick off the FIBA Basketball World Cup qualifiers. While Anthony conducted the draw on stage, Dirk was there to present the Naismith Trophy on behalf of reigning champions Germany.

After the event, Melo was asked about his take on the favourites for the tournament, to which he had an unconventional answer. While he mentioned usual suspects like the USA, Germany, and France, he also picked Puerto Rico as a team to watch out for.

“It’s enjoyable to watch Puerto Rico come out and play and have an opportunity, coming from a small town from a small island like that” Melo said.

Nowitzki was also quizzed about the tournament. When asked which group would be very difficult to get out of, Nowitzki promptly replied Group C: consisting of Serbia, Turkiye, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

“Its a pretty tough draw, some teams are pretty lucky not ending up in that group,” he said.

He also praised Serbia, who were the bronze-medalists at the Paris Olympics, adding,” Serbia – obviously one of the best teams in the world. They had a great tournament last year in the Olympics. So that group is pretty stacked as well.”

Nowitzki lauded the increased standard of European teams and seemed positive about their chances at the World Cup. “The depth we have on the continent. So many teams, so many countries are very good and can upset anybody at any time. Europe has good groups and will have a fun ride. It’ll be fun to watch.” said the Deutschman.

Nowitzki is right to be optimistic about European teams. He himself came close to winning it in 2002 but had to settle for a bronze despite being the top-scorer as well being named the MVP.

But the Die Mannschaft went two steps ahead and won the FIBA World Cup in 2023. The Dunking Deutschman would be hoping for a similar outcome in two years’ time.

Dirk Nowitzki’s is a great supporter of International Windows

Nowitzki, who is also the Chairman of the FIBA Player’s Commission, has been a very vocal supporter of International Windows. He thinks it will be a opportunity for the players as well as for fans to come and support them. “It’s always tough, but I love the windows. You play every couple of months, you have your home court, you have fans that come and support the games,” said Nowitzki.

Nowitzki also believes it will be good for players’ development to play in more meaningful games regularly for their national team.

“It’s important for national teams to play meaningful games regularly, not just in the summer or only once a year. It’s time for the player to come in, for young players to be battle-tested. The windows are big – it will be fun to watch.”

Even Kenny Atkinson, head coach of the Cavaliers, voiced his agreement with Nowitzki. The 2024-25 NBA Coach of the Year was quoted saying “the FIBA experience completes you.” He further added, “I would really push for that, it would be amazing, to open more windows and make it mandatory,”

Although the idea sounds great on paper, it will be difficult to execute in reality. The NBA already has a very tight schedule. And adding any more FIBA games will increase the burden on players, which can lead to injuries.

FIBA and NBA may need to work together on this and come up with viable solution, for this idea to become a reality.