Gordon Hayward is hanging up his sneakers.
The 34-year-old referred to as it a profession after 14 NBA seasons, asserting his resolution on social media on Thursday.
“At present, I’m formally retiring from the sport of basketball,” Hayward wrote on X. “It’s been an unimaginable journey and I’m so grateful to everybody who helped me obtain greater than I ever imagined.”
The Butler product was on the precipice of stardom on the finish of his faculty profession, arising simply wanting a nationwide title with the Bulldogs in 2010 — his half-court heave on the buzzer coming down simply barely to the left of the ring in what would’ve been the wildest second in faculty basketball historical past.
He went on to be the No. 9 decide within the NBA draft later that yr, going to the Jazz, with whom he turned an All-Star in 2017.
The next season, he bolted for Boston, reuniting along with his former Butler coach Brad Stevens, who was a key determine in turning him from an unranked three-star recruit into an NBA participant.
Hayward didn’t get off to an excellent begin in Boston, fracturing his tibia and dislocating his ankle in a grotesque opening-night damage throughout the 2017-18 season.
Accidents continued to mar his stick with the Celtics, who traded him to the Hornets in 2020.
Hayward was dealt to the Thunder this previous season however performed sparingly because the 2024 commerce deadline acquisition didn’t fairly work out in Oklahoma Metropolis.
He was annoyed after their second-round playoff exit through which he performed a grand whole of quarter-hour within the six-game sequence.
“Disappointing with the way it all sort of labored out,” he instructed reporters after the playoff elimination. “Actually irritating. I really feel as a participant, I’ve so much to supply. Simply wasn’t actually given a lot of a possibility to do this. I believed I might be given that chance.”
Nonetheless, Hayward confirmed gratitude towards his followers as his profession closed after 835 regular-season NBA video games the place he averaged 15.2 factors and 4.4 rebounds.
“To all my followers: thanks for supporting me by the ups and downs,” Hayward wrote on Thursday. “I’ll all the time cherish the letters of encouragement and the moments we’ve shared all over the world.
“You impressed me to all the time dream huge and enhance on a regular basis — and for the younger gamers up subsequent, I problem you do to the identical.”
