Dallas Mavericks: Steven Nash to Dirk Nowitzki throwback caps off Assist Week

Dallas Mavericks greats Dirk Nowitzki and Steve Nash produced a must-see play in 2000 that was used as the cap to NBA Assist Week.

The Dallas Mavericks had two young budding stars back in 2000. The Mavs had not made the playoffs since 1990. Dirk Nowitzki was entering his third season. He showed plenty of promise during the previous year. Steve Nash was running the point and coming off his breakout season.

There are a ton of parallels between the 2000-2001 season, and the coming year for the Mavericks. Luka Doncic is running the point and coming off his breakout season (Nash was 26 years old, though). The Mavs have Kristaps Porzingis as their power forward. He admittedly modeled his game after Dirk.

The Nash and Dirk duo was a ton of fun to watch. The NBA recently celebrated Assist Week. They capped it off on Sunday with a throwback Mavs highlight that fans need to see.

The Mavericks defeated the Celtics 106-98 in that game back in Dec. 2000. Nowitzki had 31 points. Nash finished with 20 points and 14 assists.

Dallas also returned to the playoffs that season. It started a run of 12 straight years in the postseason that included two trips to the NBA Finals and a championship in 2011.

Steve Nash left the Mavs when he fit free agency in 2004. He signed with the Phoenix Suns and went on to win two MVP awards.

Dirk Nowitzki retired at the end of last year ending his career after 21 seasons all with the Mavericks. He will go down as one of the all-time greats. Expect a statue outside the American Airlines Center honoring Dirk in the near future.

The team is hoping to repeat the feat they did in 2000. Dallas has the star duo in Doncic and Porzingis. The Western Conference is tough, but the Mavs will be significantly better too. Fans should be excited to see what they can accomplish.

The Smoking Cuban brings Dallas Mavericks supporters a plethora of content including opinions that are unique, so returning often is a must for die-hard fans.