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Tony Parker retires from NBA after 18 seasons

"If I can't play for a championship, I don't want to play basketball anymore," Tony Parker said as he retired from the NBA.

By Opta
Tony Parker

New York, June 11: Four-time NBA champion Tony Parker is retiring after 18 seasons.

The 37-year-old point guard announced on Monday (June 10) that this past campaign was his last.

He spent 17 years with the San Antonio Spurs before joining the Charlotte Hornets for one final season.

"I'm going to retire," Parker told The Undefeated. "I decided that I'm not going to play basketball anymore."

While Parker insisted he feels healthy and could play for another two years, he felt this was the right time to walk away.

"A lot of different stuff ultimately led me to this decision," Parker said. "But, at the end of the day, I was like, if I can't be Tony Parker anymore and I can't play for a championship, I don't want to play basketball anymore."

A native of France, Parker starred during his time in San Antonio and became part of a legendary power trio that included Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili, who have both retired too.

After his 17th season in San Antonio, Parker joined the Hornets and averaged 9.5 points per game in a reserve role. He revealed it was at the end of the 2018-19 term that he came to the decision.

Despite saying throughout his career that he wanted to play for 20 seasons, joining the Hornets changed Parker's perspective.

"For 17 years, every year that I started with the Spurs, I really thought that we had a good chance to win the championship," he said.

"And so it was very weird to arrive to a team and you're like, 'There is no way we're going to win the championship'.

"And even if I had a great time - and the Charlotte players, they were great with me and they were great guys - at the end of the day I play basketball to win something, and it's been like that with the [French] national team when we try to compete for a gold medal or with the Spurs to win a championship.

"And if I don't play for a championship, I feel like, why are we playing? And so that's why it was very different for me mentally to focus and get motivated to play a game that I love, because I want to win something."

A six-time All-Star, Parker ends his career with averages of 15.5 points, 5.6 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game.

He was selected 28th overall in the 2001 NBA draft by the Spurs and quickly helped the team capture its second NBA title in 2003 under coach Gregg Popovich. Along with Ginobili and Duncan, San Antonio went on to capture three more titles in 2005, 2007 and 2014.

Now that he will not have to worry about NBA practices and games, Parker said he was going to stay in San Antonio, which he considers home, and travel more to France and other parts of the world.

When asked why he did not have a farewell tour like Dirk Nowitzki and Dwyane Wade, Parker explained it was because he already said goodbye to the Spurs.

"It was kind of different because I was in there with Charlotte, so I didn't feel like the need of having a goodbye," he said. "For me, the goodbye will be when my jersey will be retired (in San Antonio) or I make the Hall of Fame."

Story first published: Tuesday, June 11, 2019, 8:23 [IST]
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