Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE by way of Getty Pictures
Veteran ahead Gordon Hayward is retiring from the NBA after 14 seasons, he introduced Thursday on social media.
Hayward, 34, break up the 2023-24 season between the Charlotte Hornets and Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder.
The Thunder acquired Hayward for a stint within the second half of the season as they made a playoff push. Oklahoma Metropolis earned the No. 1 seed within the Western Convention earlier than being eradicated within the second spherical.
Hayward didn’t rating a single level within the Thunder’s playoff run, and his acquisition was thought of a “miss” by basic supervisor Sam Presti.
“I missed on that,” Presti advised reporters. “That is on me. However I am studying, I am making an attempt to study this workforce, I am making an attempt to study the tempo of the workforce somewhat bit. And making an attempt to be an ideal observer of the workforce because it’s going via its paces, understanding that it is actually going to alter by itself in and of itself.”
An All-Star in 2017, Hayward by no means fairly recaptured his type after struggling a fractured tibia and dislocated ankle throughout his first sport with the Boston Celtics through the 2017-18 season.
General, Hayward averaged 15.2 factors, 4.4 rebounds and three.5 assists per sport throughout his profession. He peaked throughout his seven-year tenure with the Utah Jazz as one of many NBA’s most versatile offensive wings.
Hayward can also be one of many best gamers in Butler’s basketball historical past. He led the Bulldogs to the NCAA nationwide championship sport in 2010, narrowly lacking a half-court shot because the buzzer expired that might have given Butler a title.