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Cuban: I challenged young Dirk to 1-on-1, quit with 2-1 lead

Kevin Jairaj / USA TODAY Sports

Before he became an NBA champion, regular-season and Finals MVP, 13-time All-Star, surefire Hall of Famer, and the greatest player in Dallas Mavericks history, Dirk Nowitzki was a scrawny, unknown international commodity, and Mavs owner Mark Cuban saw a mark.

"I came in right after him and I beat him one-on-one and I'm like, 'This guy's a burger,'" Cuban told reporters Monday, according to James Herbert of CBS Sports.

Of course, Cuban's victory was a bit of small-sample-size theater, though that hasn't stopped the notoriously loudmouthed billionaire from gloating.

"I went up 2-0," Cuban explained. "Then he scored, then I quit, so I could always say I beat him."

Enjoy anecdotes like this while you can. They're the kind of stories robot reporters simply won't be able to capture in the future.

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