Dallas Mavericks icon Dirk Nowitzki had a historic night on Wednesday, as he became the sixth player in NBA history to reach the monumental 31,000 career point milestone, and the record-breaking basket was a classic play from the German.The Mavericks narrowly lost 111-110 to the Oklahoma City Thunder last night at the American Airlines Center in Dallas. The home team wasn't able to contain Russell Westbrook, as the reigning MVP finished with a double-double of 30 points, 11 rebounds, and seven assists.Harrison Barnes was the best player for the Mavericks, as he finished with 26 points, five rebounds, and five assists, while Nowitzki had 12 points, five rebounds, and four assists. In the middle of the second quarter, the German made history.With around eight minutes to go in the half, the 39-year-old had the ball near the paint of the Thunder's basket and was being closely marked by Jerami Grant. In classic Nowitzki fashion, he reached 31,000 career points with his patented one-legged fadeaway as you can see in the video further down.The power forward is now part of a legendary club that includes Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, and Wilt Chamberlain.

Nowitzki is within touching distance of catching Chamberlain's 31,419 career points before the 2017-18 season ends, but the man himself has said that he won't be looking actively to make it happen.

The Mavericks icon said to Brad Townsend of the Dallas Morning News: "You see it all the time. The number was, what, averaging 14 or 15 a game [this season], which is a tough ask, obviously, at 39 [years old]. And the one thing I didn't want to do is just shoot shots to get a milestone. I want to play within myself and within the team and be out there as much as I can."

Sure enough, when Nowitzki does decide to retire from the NBA, he will likely be a first ballot Hall of Famer. However, many fans will be hoping the German still has a lot left in the tank and that he continues to play for years to come.

The Mavericks play next on Friday when they travel to Chicago to take on the Bulls.