DALLAS — Add Dirk Nowitzki to the bumper crop of talented free agents.
A person familiar with the decision tells The Associated Press that Nowitzki has notified the Dallas Mavericks he is opting out of the final year and $21.5 million on his existing contract. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the team wasn’t planning to announce Nowitzki’s decision.
Mavericks president Donnie Nelson already has booked a flight that will have him overseas at 12:01 a.m. ET on Thursday – or, 6:01 a.m. in Germany. He wants to be there when the free agency signing window opens to show how sincere the team is about keeping its all-time leading scorer and rebounder.