Dirk Nowitzki’s rivalry with LeBron James’ Miami Heat was apparently not friendly. J.J. Barea, a former Dallas Mavericks guard, provided some insight into how Nowitzki felt about James and the Big 3 in Miami.
“He hated Miami. He hated LeBron, (Dwyane) Wade, (Chris) Bosh,” Barea said on J.J. Reddick’s “The Old Man and the Three” podcast. “He’s never going to say that, but he couldn’t stand it.”
Nowitzki isn’t the only one who felt that way. It feels like much of the LeBron hate has faded in recent years, with the star establishing himself as one of the greatest and classiest players in history. But when LeBron abandoned the Cavaliers and made the announcement — you, of course, remember the disaster that was The Decision — he turned into a super villain, promising not one, not two, not three (and so on) championships.
Nowitzki and so many others didn’t love that group.
Dirk was not a fan of the Heat big 3.
(via @OldManAndThree) pic.twitter.com/1IB8BckiUF
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 3, 2021
Surely, that made Nowitzki’s win in the 2011 NBA Finals especially sweet. Nowitzki stuck it to LeBron’s Big 3 — and he did it with an organization that Nowitzki called home for over 20 years.
[vertical-gallery id=977439]