Karl-Anthony Towns made headlines in 2021 when he infamously declared himself the best big-man shooter in history. His remark sparked public discussion and criticism, given that the consensus is that Dirk Nowitzki is the undisputed great in the category.
When Jason Kidd discussed this topic ahead of his Dallas Mavericks' West Finals opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves, he could only express his appreciation for KAT's confidence. But, as everyone believes, his vote and consideration will always be behind the German legend when discussing this subject.
"Everyone has a right to their opinion, especially now," the Mavs head coach said . "But yeah, he can shoot it. He can definitely shoot it. You look at KAT, KAT is a very confident young man. He's one of the best bigs in this league, he can shoot the three at a high rate, he can put it on the floor, [and] he can score. So I think he can be one of the top big men [shooters]."
"Dirk was one of the first to start that so I think Dirk would definitely have something to say."
Dirk over KAT
Regarding the best shooting center, KAT has a solid case to make. At his size, he has an impressive career true shooting rate of 62.3%. In addition, he has a 39.8% three-point efficiency (per 4.3 attempts) throughout his nine seasons. But if we're expanding the debate into the best big-man shooter, it would be blasphemous and disrespectful to disregard Dirk 's argument for the sake of favoring Towns.
The Mavericks great mastered the art and was an absolute killer in all facets of it, from post-ups to mid-range, fadeaways, and three-pointers. In his career, he tallied 57.7% true shooting and 38% shooting from downtown. He did it all superbly in an era when spacing was still minimalized, and defense was tighter.
Nowitzki walked so Towns could run
Jack Sikma and Bill Laimbeer might've introduced shooting for big men, but Dirk truly revolutionized this culture. That important element only added to his legacy as the best shooting big, as his marksmanship paved the way for today's bigs, including KAT, to embrace the trend.
"Dirk opened the door for a lot of the bigs to become shooters," Kidd further argued.
KAT has the ultimate swagger that may help him secure the throne one day. But as Dirk reminded him , he still has a long way to go in convincing everyone that he is the best shooting big man in history.
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