Two for one, one for two. If Steve Nash goes club-hopping with Liz Hurley or Ginger Spice, Dirk Nowitzki makes it a three-point play. If Nowitzki goes to the gym for a dinner-hour shooting session with personal tutor Holger Geschwindner, Nash tags along. A couple of summers back, Nash dragged Nowitzki to an England-Argentina soccer friendly at Wembley Stadium. Last summer, Nowitzki enticed Nash to Germany for a tour of Bavaria's vineyards and castles. ("Showed him a little culture," Dirk says.)

They've been the Two Musketeers since sharing a press conference five days after the 1998 draft day trade that brought them to Big D. Hard times early on sealed their bond. The lockout cut short their first Mavs season, but left enough time for them to become co-scapegoats for a 19-31 nightmare. Nowitzki shot 21% from the arc to play his way out of the starting lineup, while Nash -- after signing a $33M, six-year contract extension -- shot 36.3% from the field to edge Nowitzki on the local Boo-meter.

Turns out Nash was hurt and Nowitzki just needed a little time. Nowitzki, who'd arrived in America not knowing how to write a check or tip at a restaurant, was wise enough to move into the same apartment complex as Nash, who took his German teammate everywhere -- especially on the road, where Nash has a pack of friends in every city. "Steve always put his own troubles aside to look after Dirk," says Mavericks assistant coach Donnie Nelson. "That's why we wanted him."

Back-to-back 50-win seasons have a way of healing all wounds, so life today is good. Each has improved his game every season. And their unspoken communication -- Nash slashing deep into the lane, then kicking it out to Dirk for an open triple -- is the hallmark of Nellie Ball. They drive to practices and home games together, share every postgame meal and even made their All-Star debuts together, checking in at the scorer's table in tandem.

All that's left is to win a title side by side.

This article appears in the April 29 issue of ESPN The Magazine.