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L.A. Clippers announcers apologize for mocking ex-NBA player who died in 2011

Monday’s Clippers-Mavericks game created headlines when Los Angeles coach Doc Rivers called a late timeout and encouraged the home crowd to cheer for Dallas’ Dirk Nowitzki, who may be in his final NBA season. Earlier in the game, Nowitzki was indirectly involved in another episode that caused ripples — and caused the Clippers’ announcing team to apologize.

Longtime Clippers play-by-play announcer Ralph Lawler and analyst Don MacLean were calling the game for Fox Sports Prime Ticket when they began to discuss the fact that Nowitzki, a 14-time All-Star widely considered the greatest European player in NBA history, arrived in Dallas via a 1998 draft-day trade that sent Robert “Tractor” Traylor to the Milwaukee Bucks.