Dirk Nowitzki changed the game with his shooting - that one-legged fadeaway is etched into NBA history - but his impact didn’t stop when he hung up his sneakers. These days, he’s still shaping the league, just in a different role. And if you’ve been watching OG Anunoby light it up from beyond the arc this season, there’s a chance you’ve seen some of Dirk’s fingerprints on that jumper.
Nowitzki, who’s been doing studio work for Amazon Prime Video, has also been quietly working behind the scenes as a shooting mentor. While his relationship with the Dallas Mavericks has cooled a bit since the Luka Doncic era began, his passion for the game hasn’t. And this offseason, the New York Knicks tapped into that passion.
The Knicks weren’t able to lure Jason Kidd away from Dallas to replace Tom Thibodeau, but they did convince Nowitzki to spend some time with the team. One player who’s clearly benefitting from that connection? OG Anunoby.
Anunoby has long been known as a defensive stopper - a switchable wing who can guard one through four and make life miserable for scorers. But this year, he’s added a new wrinkle to his game: consistent, high-volume three-point shooting.
He’s hitting a career-best 40.8% from deep on 6.1 attempts per game, and in the Knicks’ NBA Cup win over the Spurs, he dropped five triples on ten attempts. That kind of efficiency doesn’t just happen - it’s built.
Nowitzki was on the broadcast for that game, and he didn’t shy away from taking a little credit for Anunoby’s breakout shooting season. But it wasn’t bragging - it was insight.
“He just wanted to know every little detail,” Dirk said. “Feet, hand positioning, breathing, where the eyes go. He asked me all sorts of questions.”
That curiosity is what separates good players from great ones. And when you’ve got a Hall of Famer like Nowitzki willing to break down the mechanics, you listen.
“One main thing I told him about is finger position on the ball,” Dirk explained. “When I shot, I liked to spread my fingers as wide as I could.
I wanted the pointer and middle finger to be the last two to touch the ball - that way, you almost build like train tracks. The ball should always go straight.
You should never miss left or right.”
It’s a simple concept, but the way Dirk frames it - with that “train tracks” analogy - makes it stick. It’s the kind of teaching that youth coaches should be bookmarking and showing to their players. It’s not just about repetition; it’s about understanding the why behind the motion.
“If you shoot with one finger, the ball can go left or right,” Dirk continued. “But if you put the ball over the train tracks, good shooters should only miss short or long, not left or right.
Those are the little things I talked to him about. Hopefully it helped - he’s been shooting it well.”
That’s the kind of insight that’s been refreshing to see on Amazon and NBC’s NBA broadcasts. With former players like Nowitzki and Udonis Haslem in the studio, the tone has shifted from entertainment-first to education-with-style. During Dirk’s breakdown, Steve Nash and Blake Griffin gave him the floor - no interruptions, no punchlines - just pure basketball IQ on display.
And while it’s likely that Nowitzki’s sessions with Anunoby went even deeper than what he shared on-air, the fact that he can translate that knowledge so clearly for fans at home is a gift in itself. He’s not just teaching players - he’s teaching the game.
So if Anunoby keeps drilling threes and expanding his offensive game, don’t be surprised. There’s a Hall of Famer behind that jump shot, and his name is Dirk.