The Dallas Mavericks are NBA Champions, and a large part of that is thanks to Dirk Nowitzki. Nowitzki was rewarded with his excellent performance on Sunday night, not only winning the NBA Title, but winning the NBA Finals MVP award as well.
Nowitzki wasn't at his finest on Sunday night in Game 6, going 9-27 from the field, including 1-7 from beyond the arc, for 21 points. Nowitzki did add 11 rebounds, though, good for a double-double in a series clinching game.
Nowitzki has been excellent all throughout the NBA Playoffs, and has at times carried the Mavericks on his back. Nowitzki scored 27 in the Game 1 loss to the Heat before responding with 24 points - including the decisive basket in the waning seconds of Game 2 to even the series at a game a piece.
Nowitzki followed that up with 34 points in the Game 3 loss to the Heat, missing a game-tying bucket as time expired.
Dirk then came back with a double-double in Game 4 as the Mavs tied the series up, scoring 21 points while grabbing 11 rebounds. Nowitzki then added a team high 29 points in the all-important Game 5 win that gave the Mavericks a 3-2 series lead.
The Finals MVP for Dirk is well deserved, and is a capstone on one of the greatest careers in NBA history.