Korbball? Ja!

This fall, Dirk Nowitzki is once again teaching a German class at the Lego Land Academy of Languages. Basketball has become a quite popular sport around the world in recent years, so many NBA stars have signed up to take the class. The class covers the introductory levels of German pronunciation, grammar, and usage. All of Dirk Nowitzki's students (both past and present) agree that he is an outstanding teacher.

Today's lesson is a very important one for the NBA players-- it is all about basketball, which is often called Korbball in German. For this lesson, Dirk Nowitzki has chosen a basic dialog for the students to practice with a partner.

Below: Dirk Nowitzki in front of his class

In the basic dialog, there are two people--Helga and Peter. They are discussing what they are doing that day.

Helga: Was machst du heute?

Peter: Wir spielen Korbball. Kommst du?

Helga: Ich glaube nicht. Ihr verliert das Spiel immer.

Peter: Meinst du das, oder sagst du das nur so?

The students do a fantastic job on today's assignment. If they keep up the hard work, Dirk Nowitzki is sure that they will all be speaking German fluently in no time.

Above: Steve Francis has a question for the teacher.

Below: Allen Iverson does, too.

American Culture 101

Currently, there are 30 teams in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Of these 30, 29 play their homes games in the United States of America. Because of this, every player in the NBA is required by the league to have a strong working knowledge of American history, culture, and politics. In the past, several players have been issued long suspensions for failing to meet the high standards set by the NBA.

Recently, Dirk Nowitzki (below) was notified by the league that he is one of the players who has been randomly selected to take a written test that covers all aspects of American life. The test will include multiple-choice items, short answer questions, and at least one essay.

Dirk Nowitzki is, of course, worried about how he will do on this test, so he has decided to talk to his friend Karl Malone. (See photo below)

Karl Malone is more than happy to help out in any way that he can. He lends Dirk Nowitzki two very important items to study-- his Nixon/Agnew campaign button and his copy of The Collected Speeches of Spiro Agnew (published in 1971). (See photo below)

Dirk Nowitzki studies hard -- Spiro Agnew made many notable speeches in 1969 and 1970, and Dirk Nowitzki knows that he must read them all.

Now that Dirk Nowitzki is done studying, Karl Malone is helping by giving him a practice quiz (see photo below)--

• Question: Who are more dangerous-- the neo-isolationists or the radical-liberals?
• Answer: They are both more dangerous, just in different ways. (Correct)

• Question: Which rock-and-roll groups are most responsible for the blatant drug-culture propaganda that pervades our society?
• Answer: The Jefferson Airplane, Ten Years After, and Steppenwolf. (Correct)

Dirk Nowitzki passes the practice quiz with flying colors. Karl Malone is very confident that Dirk Nowitzki will so just as well or even better on the actual test.

Game night in Lego Land

Tonight Jalen Rose has invited all the NBA players over to play Clue-- "Parker Brothers Classic Detective Game". Clue is a game in which six players try to solve a mystery about which one of them committed a murder. The players also have to figure out where the murder took place and what the murder weapon was.

Below: Dirk Nowitzki and Shaq examine the roll of the dice.

Steve Francis thinks he is on to something-- he has found this lead pipe lying on the floor of the lounge. Vince Carter definitely agrees that the lounge is a strange place to find a slightly-bent lead pipe.

Meanwhile, Jalen Rose and Dirk Nowitzki are investigating the kitchen. They both believe that this large candlestick may hold important clues.

The time has come for the players to make their accusations and then to reveal the true identity of the murder. They have all gathered (see photo below) for the final showdown.

Everyone wonders-- "Who will it turn out to be?"

Playing soccer

Today the NBA All-Stars have decided to take a break from playing basketball, so they are playing soccer instead. They have been joined by two world-famous soccer stars -- Alexandre Pato of Brazil and Gennaro Gattuso of Italy. (See photo below - Pato is on the left next to Allen Iverson and Gattuso is on the right next to Shaq.)

Both Pato and Gattuso play professionally for AC Milan, a club that is considered so important that it is owned by Italy's long-time Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi. All of the NBA stars are quite excited that they are getting the chance to play with two soccer stars as famous as Pato and Gattuso.

Here are some photos of today's historic match:

Below: Kevin Garnett gets ready to take a corner kick.

Below: Allen Iverson commits a handball inside the penalty area.

Below: Pato gets ready to take the resulting penalty kick.

Below: Pato scores on goalie Jalen Rose.

Below: Later on, Pato is fouled by Tony Parker.

Below: Gattuso and Dirk Nowitzki are fighting. Shaq and Antoine Walker rush over to break it up.

Special thanks to Dorothy for her assistance in creating this post.

Working out at the gym

During the off-season, NBA stars spend a lot of time working out in the gym so that they can be as strong as possible for the start of the regular season. Physical fitness is very important for everyone, but especially for professional basketball players because of the grueling schedule they face.

Below: Antoine Walker is lifting weights.

Above: Tony Parker works on his legs.

Below: Dirk Nowitzki builds his upper-body strength.

Below: Steve Francis rides the exercise bicycle. When he is finished, Steve Francis will enjoy an nutritious fitness shake high in protein, vitamins, and electrolytes.

Steve Francis has a repair shop

In addition to being an NBA basketball player, Steve Francis owns and operates a repair shop. He fixes cars, trucks, bicycles, and small appliances. Sometimes Antoine Walker likes to hang around the shop and help out with the work. Today, the alien guy has brought his UFO in because it is having trouble starting in the morning (especially when the weather is cold).

Above: Steve Francis and Antoine Walker discuss the problem with the alien guy.

Below: The UFO.

Steve Francis and Antoine Walker have different ideas about what might be wrong with the UFO. Steve Francis thinks that starter motor is bad and will need to be replaced. Antoine Walker believes that it is just the starter solenoid that is faulty and not the entire starter. The only way to find out is to open the UFO up, so they both get to work.

Above and below: Steve Francis and Antoine Walker try to diagnose the problem.

Above and below: More pictures of the two NBA players working on the UFO.

Below: Steve Francis uses his jack hammer.

While Steve Francis and Antoine Walker are busy fixing the UFO, they do not notice that they are being spied on. (See photo below) Gary Payton and Vince Carter are trying hard to get a glimpse of the UFO and the alien guy. They have been tracking the movements of the UFO for several days, but they have not told anybody about what they have seen because of a promise they made to Dirk Nowitzki.

Below: Gary Payton uses the binoculars to try to get a closer look.

The UFO is now all fixed and Steve Francis, Antoine Walker, the alien guy, and the pig are standing around the repair shop enjoying ice-cold sodas. In the end, Steve Francis is correct -- the entire starter has to be replaced, not just the solenoid. This is bad news for the alien guy, because that costs more money, but Steve Francis does his best to give him a break on the price.

UFO sighting

On their first night in Lego Land, Gary Payton and Vince Carter do what they always do when they come to a new town-- go out walking in the woods looking for UFOs. (See photo above) They have not been walking for very long when they see a real live UFO. (See photo below)

Gary Payton and Vince Carter are very excited and go back to find Dirk Nowitzki to tell him what they have found. (See photo below) Dirk Nowitzki is not interested in what they have to say, however, and will not come out to see the UFO no matter how many times they ask. In fact, Dirk Nowitzki is worried that the other NBA players in Lego Land will think that they are crazy for believing in UFOs. He makes Gary Payton and Vince Carter promise that they will tell no one about what they think they have discovered.

For many days after that, Vince Carter and Gary Payton spend all of their free time out in the woods looking at the UFO. (See photo above) What they do not know, however, is that the UFO belongs to the alien guy (pictured below, with his UFO) who is a good friend of all the other NBA players. If only they would mention what they have seen, then the other NBA players could tell them all about their friend, the alien guy. Sadly, they promised Dirk Nowitzki that they would not tell.

Below: The alien guy hanging out with Shaq at the UFO. Unfortunately, Gary Payton and Vince Carter were busy at that time and did not get to see it.

Three more NBA players have arrived

In another exciting development, three more NBA players have arrived in Lego Land -- Gary Payton (in the pith helmet), Dirk Nowitzki (the only NBA player who comes with separate hair), and Vince Carter (in the red construction worker helmet). (See photo above)

Inside the box the players brought with them, there was an unexpected surprise-- Dirk Nowitzki came with two, rather than one, identical hair pieces. Not surprisingly, however, Gary Payton has called dibs on the extra hair piece. Do not be shocked if you see him wearing it sometimes.

Below: Gary Payton tries out Dirk Nowitzki's extra hair.