DALLAS – Slam dunk champion Zach LaVine sliced through the Dallas Mavericks' defense, leaped off one foot in a crowd and tried to finish with a twisting, right-handed layup. Dirk Nowitzki denied the Minnesota Timberwolves’ ridiculously springy 21-year-old, as the gravity-challenged 38-year-old swatted LaVine’s shot off the glass.

“Those kids better learn,” Nowitzki cracked with a wry smile Sunday afternoon after the Mavericks’ 98-87 victory, which snapped the Timberwolves’ three-game winning streak. “Nah, I’m kidding.”

That play provided some comedic fodder, but it also offered a little more encouragement on a much more serious subject: There are signs of life in Nowitzki’s old legs.

Nowitzki’s season-high three blocks Sunday are a bonus -- and a stat you might never see again. His efficient scoring (17 points on 7-of-14 shooting, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range) is the continuation of a recent trend.

It’s the third consecutive game that Nowitzki, who has been sidelined or a shell of himself for most of the season due to a strained right Achilles tendon, has shown flashes of being the guy who carried the franchise for a generation. The big German has averaged 20.3 points in the past three games, going 22-of-45 from the floor and 11-of-19 from 3-point range.

“If I get some daylight, I feel good,” said Nowitzki, who ranks sixth in NBA history in scoring but was averaging only 11.8 points on 37.6 percent shooting this season before this three-game groove. “I have a decent rhythm now.

“There’s weeks where it seems like you can’t miss, and then there’s weeks where like the easiest stuff is not going. Just gonna have to try to keep this going, keep working on the off days, keep shooting, keep trying to mix in extra conditioning to get even better, get even stronger legs-wise. Just keep on working, man.”

It’s not as though Nowitzki has suddenly found the fountain of youth and turned back into the dominant player he was during his prime. He’ll never be that guy again. It’s simply not realistic to ask a dude that old to carry an offense and consistently create his own shots, which is why Harrison Barnes has taken ownership of all the old iso plays that coach Rick Carlisle designed for Dirk back in the day.

But a healthy Nowitzki can still be an offensive force and perhaps help the Mavs compete for the West’s final playoff spot, considering the sub-.500 competition for that spot. After all, Nowitzki is coming off one of the most prolific, efficient scoring seasons ever for a player his age. Last season, he joined all-time scoring leader Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the only players in NBA history to average at least 18 points with a 50-plus eFG% at age 37 or older.

The Mavs have legitimate reason to believe Nowitzki has worked his way back into that form.

“I think he’s back to enjoying it,” said guard J.J. Barea, who also had a performance that provided encouraging signs he’s getting back to being himself after dealing with a nagging injury, scoring 15 points on 5-of-5 shooting in 17 minutes off the bench. “He’s back to competing out there. We cannot use him like we used to use him, but every once in awhile, we definitely rely on him. He’s doing good. He’s feeling good.

“When he starts talking a lot in the locker room, when he starts messing around a lot, when he starts hitting his 3s, I know he’s in his game. That’s a great feeling for us.”

You know Nowitzki is feeling good when he launches a 3 from several feet behind the line, as he did during Dallas’ 11-0 run in the second half, drilling a 27-footer as the trailer. He mentioned he might not have taken that shot if he wasn’t coming off a couple of makes, but Nowitzki wouldn’t have even considered letting it fly if his legs didn’t feel much better than they have most of the season.

“I still feel like I’ve got some ways to improve,” Nowitzki said. “I feel sometimes a little sluggish on certain moves, on certain push-offs, getting from one spot to another, especially when there’s a turnover, the quick reaction play where somebody’s coming down the middle. I feel like there’s still a way to improve, but my stand-still shot is there. Some of the post moves are there. I’ve just got to keep on working on days off to get better.”