Fansided

Mark Cuban isn’t worried about Houston targeting Dirk Nowtizki

By Trisity Miller

Dec 20, 2013; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and Dallas Mavericks power forward Dirk Nowitzki (right) react during the game against the Toronto Raptors at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 20, 2013; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and Dallas Mavericks power forward Dirk Nowitzki (right) react during the game against the Toronto Raptors at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports /
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When Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports revealed to the world that the Houston Rockets would allow Chandler Parsons to test restricted free agency this summer, the piece threw in an interesting nugget about the players Houston would target in free agency. Beside the typical Carmelo Anthony, Lebron James, Kevin Love chatter, Wojnarowski listed Dirk Nowitzki as a possible target for Daryl Morey’s squad.

And guess who isn’t worried about the chatter: Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.

“I don’t pay attention to that,” Cuban said in an interview with SportsDay.

While Houston may be interested in Dirk Nowitzki, it’s tough to see him walking away from the Dallas Mavericks, a team the 2012 NBA Finals MVP has been apart of since his inaugural NBA season in 1998. With unrestricted free agency in Nowitzki’s near future, the star power forward has made it known that he’d be willing to take a significant pay cut in order to return to Dallas and leave money that’ll allow Cuban and company to continue improving the surrounding talent around the forward.

“At this point of my career, it’s all about competing and winning,” Nowitzki said following seasons end. “It’s not about money. Obviously, Cuban took care of me for a long, long time. I always tried to pay him back by hard playing and being here for this franchise, so I don’t think we’re going to fight over money.

“I want to compete over these last couple of years. That’s going to be the goal.”

With an expected rise and the salary cap combined with the ample amount of salary cap the Mavericks could have this offseason, there’s no reason to think Nowitzki and company return to the playoffs in 2015.

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