Kobe Bryant and Dirk Nowitzki?s Rivalry Summed Up During Epic Trash Talking Incident From Lakers Vs Mavs Thriller in 2008

Kobe Bryant and Dirk Nowitzki had an intense rivalry. Just like Kobe, Dirk also played for only one franchise in the NBA. In his span of 21 years in the league, the 7 ft German star had many accolades to his name. He is a 14-time NBA All-Star and a member of NBA 75th anniversary team. He won the NBA championship in the 2010-2011 season when he also won the finals MVP.

Dirk?s rivalry with Kobe was full of respect, admiration, and love. They both acknowledged each other?s quality. Kobe always seemed to have something extra when the Lakers faced the Mavericks. Although the 2 superstars met each other on the court 53 times, their most fierce face-off was on March 2nd, 2008. The game went into overtime and the two had 82 points combined.

Kobe Bryant & Dirk Nowitzki put on a show

Throwback to March 2nd, 2008, Kobe and Dirk went against each other at a regular season game. The Lakers eventually ended up beating the Mavericks 108-104 after overtime. This match gave us another moment to add to the Kobe-Dirk rivalry. But aside from the game itself, the fans also enjoyed the trash talk between Kobe and Dirk.

Kobe called Dirk ?Yeah Big German? in between a free throw for the Lakers. Dirk smiled in response and winked towards Kobe. Kobe then said, ?I see you there?. Amidst a situation in the match where any side could have won, Kobe said, ?Not Today?.?

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Kobe then went on and made sure he lived up to his words as he ended the match with massive 52 points, a feat he had achieved for the 22nd time and would end his career with 25 games with 50 or more points. Dirk Nowitzki also had a top-notch game. He scored 20 points in the fourth quarter and overtime and 30 in total. His three-pointer forced the game into overtime. However, towards the end, it was the lakers who won the game by 4 points.?

Read More: Kobe against his home town Philadelphia.

Their rivalry gave us many moments to enjoy and remember. The respect between the two stars is what made the rivalry even more special. There was a time when Kobe wanted out and we could have seen the two legends on the same team.

Would you have wanted to see 2 great forces like Kobe Bryant and Dirk Nowitzki play on the same side? Let us know in the comments below.