On the big stage of the NBA, players come and go, and their jerseys change and change, as if they are playing a high-speed rotating musical chair. But there are so many people who have been dead to their own team since the day they stepped into the league, which can be called the NBA version of "from the beginning to the end". No, Dirk · Nowitzki and Stephen · Curry are the two masters of such "dedication".
Nowitzki, the big man from Germany, has been with the Dallas Mavericks for 21 years. You know, in 21 years, you can raise a college student in marriage. He worked longer than most people at the Lone Ranger, and he was a living example of an "old scalper".
When he first came to the NBA, Nowitzki wasn't as imposing as he is now. In the first year, he was like a "rookie", and he couldn't even touch double digits in points per game. But the Lone Ranger is also a patient master, and he didn't throw this "hairy boy" on the bench to get moldy. Instead, he was made a starter the following year, which is a good thing, Nowitzki is like a doping, and his score is slowly rising.
In a few years, the German tank will be completely opened. averaged more than 20 points per game, was selected for the best team, and led the team to the playoffs, which simply turned the Mavericks' history record book upside down. In 2007, Nowitzki was even more aggressive, directly winning the regular season MVP crown. This can make the Lone Ranger happy, so he has to build an exclusive parking space for Nowitzki.
It's strange to say, the year Nowitzki won the MVP, the Mavericks actually made a big mistake in the playoffs. The outside world thought that the Mavericks were going to pack Nowitzki away, but who knew that the team's top brass didn't have this idea at all. Nowitzki lived up to this trust. In 2011, he led the Mavericks to the finals, cleaned up the Heat Big Three, and by the way, he also got an FMVP.
After this championship, Nowitzki's form is like a roller coaster, plummeting. But the lone ranger still treats him as a baby. It wasn't until 2019 that the 40-year-old Nowitzki reluctantly said goodbye. By the time he retired, the number of wins had accumulated to 916, which was more than Kobe Bryant and Garnett, and he was simply a walking victory machine.
Let's talk about Curry, the "schoolboy"-looking marksman, who was drafted by the Golden State Warriors in 2009 and fell in love with the Warriors. In the first few years of his arrival, Curry didn't show anything spectacular, and even got injured. However, the Warriors did not dislike him, but continued to build the team with him as the core.
It worked, and Curry soon began to move sideways around the league. In 2015, he led the Warriors to win the championship and won an MVP himself. In the following season, Curry was even more crazy, averaging 30 points per game, and also made 402 three-pointers, which is even more outrageous than science fiction.
The Warriors under Curry's leadership are like a plug-in. 4 crowns in 8 years, if this result is put in the game, I am afraid that it will be reported as cheating. The current Curry is like a living sign in the Warriors, and when it comes to the Warriors, the first thing that pops up in people's minds is his baby face.
Curry has now played 956 games and won 620 of them. If he wants to surpass Nowitzki's 916 wins, he will have to win another 296 games. But the problem is that Curry is 36 years old this year, and it is difficult to win so many games. Unless he can play to the age of 40 like Nowitzki and maintain his current form, this goal may only become a beautiful fantasy.
But then again, the number of wins is really not the point. The one-person, one-city loyalty of Curry and Nowitzki is like two upright green pines in the NBA where players are roaming around, and people can't help but want to applaud them. They interpret in their own way what it means to "start from the beginning", and this professionalism is what is really worth learning from.
It's hard to say whether Curry can surpass Nowitzki's number of wins. But one thing is for sure, both of them have carved a statue for themselves in the history gallery of the NBA, which will never fade. On the base of this statue, not only their names are engraved, but also the word "loyalty". In this rapidly changing league, I am afraid that such a player will never be found again.