When he wasn't on the promotional trail for his new documentary, Dallas Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki spent most of his time in Germany in recent weeks as he usually does, locked in an old gym working on his game with lifelong shot doctor Holger Geschwindner.

Nowitzki's latest summer project: speeding up his shot release.

Dirk Nowitzki hopes to "shoot a little quicker" this season. Kevin Jairaj/USA TODAY Sports

"I don't think, to the naked eye, you would see it," Nowitzki told ESPN.com. "I don't know if the [average] fan will see the difference. But I'm always trying to get better, and this is just a little tool for me to shoot a little quicker. We'll see how it works during the season."

Geschwindner has often referred to what he calls Nowitzki's "toolbox" and the idea of adding one new specialty every offseason.

"We worked on a quicker release," Geschwindner said, citing Golden State's Steph Curry as the standard-setter for getting shots off rapid-fire and insisting that Nowitzki also can become adept at getting the ball to the release point faster "if he sticks with it."

Said Nowitzki: "Even now, I'm 36, but I don't see myself as a complete basketball player. It's always about getting better and adding stuff in the summer. That's something I wanted to look at and see how it goes, so I'll try it.

"What else can I do at 36 when the feet slow down a little bit? Try to be even quicker with the shot, because once you get older, you don't jump as high and the first step is slower. Shooting quicker should help my game for the back end of my career. And if it doesn't work [out well], I'll just go back to the old way."

After knee woes plagued him in 2012-13, Nowitzki averaged 21.7 points and 6.2 rebounds last season in leading Dallas back to the playoffs, shooting .497 from the field, .398 from 3-point range and .899 from the line to narrowly miss out on his second career 50/40/90 season.

The Mavericks will open training camp in a week with media day on Sept. 29 and a slew of new players for the fourth consecutive season, including reacquired center Tyson Chandler and free-agent signees Chandler Parsons and Jameer Nelson.