Dirk Nowitzki hasn't forgotten about LeBron James and Dwyane Wade mocking him during the 2011 NBA Finals.
The then-Miami Heat teammates were filmed jokingly coughing before facing the Dallas Mavericks in Game 5 of the series, seemingly poking fun at Nowitzki for fighting through illness the previous game. Nowitzki didn't find any humor in their actions, though.
"We saw it after Game 5, but I didn't see it. Honestly, I felt it was a little disrespectful," Nowitzki said in an interview with Yahoo Sports. "(But) it didn't add to my motivation, if that makes sense. I'm one game away from achieving my dreams, one I've chased 12 years into the league."
Former Mavs guard J.J. Barea made similar comments on a 2020 episode of "The Old Man and The Three," revealing that Nowitzki "hated" the Heat's Big Three era and was "really hurt" by the clip.
"He will never say it, but he really saw the tape, and that tape really hurt him. And that gave him a little bit extra that he didn't need, but it gave him a little extra to finish them off," Barea said.
The Mavs defeated the Heat in Game 5 and went on to win Game 6 to capture the NBA championship that year. Nowitzki was named Finals MVP after averaging 26 points and 9.7 rebounds per game.
