"Dirk Nowitzki had some great things to say about the state of the Mavericks as he took to the practice court to workout with a few teammates on Thursday.

Here's the highlights, particularly as it pertains to Tyson Chandler's likely exodus to another team via free agency and J.J. Barea, who could follow him.

"Hopefully, he's going to come back,'' Nowitzki said of Chandler. "If not, we wish him obviously the best of luck.

"When Devean George was here, he obviously won it with the Lakers, I saw him hug somebody at half court almost every game and I was like: what are you doing every game hugging somebody? And he said once you win the championship, it's like a bond. It's family forever. It's something that bonds you forever.

"And that's the same case here. Tyson is going to be family no matter where he is. And he'll always be close to us.''"