Players' Commission members hail MVP quality of captain Dirk Nowitzki

MIES (Switzerland) - Everyone marveled at Dirk Nowitzki as the long-time dazzling forward of the Dallas Mavericks and Germany.

Nowitzki is still endearing himself to others in his post-playing life, and especially with the all-star qualities he's shown as Chair of the FIBA Player's Commission, too.

"I think what's making Dirk so fantastic in this role is accessibility," said former New Zealand star Kirk Penney, who played against Nowitzki and Germany in the Third-Place Game at the FIBA Basketball World Cup in Indianapolis 21 years ago. Penney is a veteran member of the FIBA Players' Commission.

"He was just in New Zealand several months ago and spent time there," Penney said. "He's always available if you want to chat about anything or discuss, and I think for someone of his accomplishment, that's not always normal. People can be quite inaccessible."

Nowitzki was the MVP of both the World Cup 2002 and FIBA EuroBasket 2005. The 14-time NBA All-Star was the league MVP in 2007, and the NBA Finals MVP in 2011 when he led Dallas to the title.

"I think it's been really neat for us to collectively come together and collaborate and try to help the game, grow the game and support the current players," Penney said. "But he's been fantastic. What a great guy, and it was so smart of FIBA to choose him and put him in that position. Because I think also it just makes the whole commission valid when someone like that is involved."

Another veteran of the commission is Nikos Zisis, a bona fide Greek legend. Zisis excelled for the Greece team that won EuroBasket 2005 and beat Nowitzki's Germany in the Final.

"I played against him a few times," Zisis said. "I had the honor to play against him in the EuroBasket Final in 2005. I didn't know him that much personally and it really surprised me how easy he is to work with, how he bonded from day one when we had these online meetings.

"It was a different scenario with the Zoom meetings, the huge time difference from guys from Oceania, from Asia, from Africa, or from Europe. But he's always open to discuss anything in private conversation. And generally, I see him motivated and always ready to help from his position."

Down Under, Nowitzki is revered, too. That's where Australia Opals' 2006 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup winner Jenni Screen hails from.

"In Australia, we would just say he's a good bloke," said Screen, who also won Olympic silver in 2008 and bronze in 2012.

"He's down to earth. He's normal. That's the exciting part. He's equally as passionate as everyone else in growing the game, ensuring the players are represented. He's active in his chair and in his role and he understands the importance of it.

"So it's been nice to one, sit next to him as Deputy Chair in the last term but equally now see him grow this space. I take my hat off to him for how he’s increased the awareness of the Players' Commission, internationally, across basketball."

Screen says Nowitzki being chair has been essential for its credibility.

"I think Dirk is synonymous (with basketball) around the world," she said. "His name is known worldwide so that puts credence and validity to the commission on an international scale that a lot of commissions don't have.

"But he backs it up with the way he acts, the way he interacts with people. He doesn't see himself as a superior but he sees himself as a peer with his other basketball colleagues."

Roseli Gustavo, on Brazil's team that won the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup in Australia in 1994, is in her first term as a member of the Commission.

"Dirk Nowitzki is like an idol for me," she said. "I watched a lot of his games in the NBA and off the court, he looks really calm and he’s really able to manage all of this commission."

FIBA