In 1998, Nelson rejoined his father, who was a coach and general manager of the Dallas Mavericks, as assistant general manager. In the 1998 NBA draft, Nelson arranged for the Mavericks to draft little-known German Dirk Nowitzki and bring in Nash, who saw limited minutes in Phoenix, through a three-team trade. Both players would win the Most Valuable Player Award. The draft-day trades for Nowitzki and Nash is the first time in NBA history two future MVPs were acquired in the same transaction. Like with Marčiulionis and Eastern Europe in the late 1980s, Nelson opened the league to a traditionally closed market when he made the Mavericks draft the first Chinese player to ever play in the NBA, Wang Zhizhi, in 1999.