Nowitzki: Retirement is 'out of the question'

Less than 24 hours after the Dallas Mavericks were ousted from the playoffs, Dirk Nowitzki is focusing on the future.

Coming off another productive season in the NBA, the 37-year-old isn't planning to shut it down anytime soon.

"I definitely won't retire," Nowitzki told reporters. "That's out of the question. I felt great this year."

Nowitzki holds a player option for next season and said last week he intends to finish out his deal in Dallas. The Mavericks would also like him back, with head coach Rick Carlisle saying Monday he'd get on a plane and meet his star in Germany if he had to.

The 2015-16 campaign marked the third straight year that Nowitzki appeared in at least 75 games, though his 31.5-minute nightly average is the fourth-lowest mark of his 18 seasons. He averaged 18.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 1.8 assists in 75 starts.

Nowitzki, the 10th oldest active player in the league, mentioned last month that he'd like to play two decades in the league.

"Twenty years would sound really, really great," Nowitzki said. "And next year would obviously be my 19th year, so maybe after this next year I could sign on one more. But I'll just have to wait and see, I think, at this point."