„The Albert Schweitzer tournament is a very big step in the career of many young players. So it was for me as I played the AST with the German national team in 1996. I have many positive memories to the great atmosphere in the gyms and I can say that AST has taken me a lot further. For the 50th anniversary I send my congratulations to the city of Mannheim, the U.S. Army and the German Basketball Federation that have made and make this tournament such a big thing. I'm sure the AST will continue to be a very important platform for young players in Germany and from all over the world. I'm excited to see which big talents the AST 2008 is going to bring out. Probably I will meet them some years later here in the NBA.“

 
picture left: Nowitzki at EC 2007 in Spain. (DBB/Camera 4)
picture right: Nowitzki 1996 at the AST. (Kunz)