Dirk Nowitzki talks about his infamous coughing fit in the 2011 Finals / News - Basketnews.com

In a podcast, Dirk Nowitzki, a Dallas Mavericks legend, talked about his infamous coughing fit in the 2011 NBA Finals.

Credit: Reuters-Scanpix Credit Reuters-Scanpix

Former player Dirk Nowitzki of the Dallas Mavericks recounted his account of the coughing fit he had in the 2011 NBA Finals.

Tony Parker

Position:PGAge:41Height:188 cmWeight:84 kgBirth place:Bruges, BelgiumProfileNewsStatistics

In the podcast The Why with Dwyane Wade, Nowitzki was given a photograph showing Wade and LeBron James, then in the Miami Heat, mocking him for what they perceived as the German star having a fake cough in Game 4 of the 2011 NBA Finals.

That photograph was taken from a video of Wade and James before Game 5.

When shown the photograph by Dwyane Wade, Nowitzki laughed.

"I was sick that day... I didn't see this until after Game 4. I didn't appreciate it," the German star said, which led to comical reactions from everyone in the room before Nowitzki assumed seriousness again.

"I didn't like it. It felt disrespectful. I felt like I never had to fake an injury; I never had to fake an illness to show anything.

"I didn't feel well that day. I had a little fever, and really, that was it. I thought it was childish," Wade agreed, immediately repeating that last sentence.

"At the end of the day, that didn't add to the motivation. At this point, we are two games away from reaching my dream. I really didn't want this to be a big distinction for me," the German player said. "Even coach [Rick] Carlisle addressed it. He said, 'Listen, there's this video [that] came out, we are not speaking about it as a team. We are going to [stick] to our business," Nowitzki continued.

Ultimately, the German forward did not think too much of the incident besides that it was childish for him.

Dwyane Wade also gave his own account of the story.

"All [our] thoughts [were], Dirk is sick, Dirk is sick... In a moment of being young, we were like, 'oh, he's sick *cough* *cough *cough*,' and did like a fake cough, and boom, it went everywhere," explained Wade.

"Once you look at it, it was a childish moment that was caught on camera, that you wish you [could] grab that moment back. But, at the same time, it did not have any bearings on the series," Wade agreed with Nowitzki. "It wasn't going to make you a greater player; you were already great."

In the end, both men were glad to have had the conversation, with Nowitzki stating with a smile that it should have happened earlier.

Rewinding back to the 2011 NBA Finals, the Mavericks were matched with the Miami Heat and ultimately won 4-2.

The infamous Game 4, where Wade and James had made fun of Nowitzki, went the Mavericks' way. Even though the German star had an illness that game, he nevertheless had 21 points and 11 rebounds, leading his team in scoring and bringing them the victory, tying the series at 2-2.

After that, it was all Nowitzki and the Mavericks as the Dallas squad went on to beat the Heat twice consecutively and brought home Nowitzki's first and only NBA championship.

Thank you for reading us! We have even more content for you.