After 14 seasons in the NBA, SF Gordan Hayward is calling it a career. The 34-year-old started the 2023-24 season with Charlotte before he was traded to the Thunder. Hayward started all 25 games he played for Charlotte but was used sparingly by OKC. The veteran played just (17.2) minutes per game with the Thunder.
Today, Hayward went on social media and announced that he is retiring from the NBA. The one-time all-star played for four teams over his 14 seasons. Now, Hayward gets to enjoy the next chapter of his life away from basketball. He finishes his career averaging (15.2) points, (4.4) rebounds, and (3.5) assists per game.
Gordon Hayward has announced his retirement from the NBA
Thank you 🙏🏻 pic.twitter.com/fqbw3WML0n
— Gordon Hayward (@gordonhayward) August 1, 2024
Before his time in the NBA, Gordon Hayward played two seasons collegiately at Butler. He’s most famously known for his last-second buzzer-beater that almost went in during the 2010 national championship vs. Duke. That was Hayward’s sophomore season and his last at Butler. Hayward was the ninth pick in the 2010 NBA Draft by the Utah Jazz. He spent the first seven seasons of his career in Utah where he averaged (15.7) points, (4.2) rebounds, (3.4) assists, and (1.0) steals per game. Hayward’s final season with Utah was his 2016-17 campaign where he averaged a career-high (21.9) points and was selected to his first and only all-star team.
The following season, Hayward signed with the Boston Celtics. However, his career with the Celtics started horribly. In the first game of the 2017-18 season, Hayward suffered a gruesome leg injury and missed the rest of the season. The veteran played 72 games for Boston in 2018-19 but he was still clearly not the same player he used to be. He did not let that injury define his career and Hayward went on to play another six seasons. In 2020-21 with the Hornets, Hayward averaged (19.6) points per game and made 44 starts. Hayward started the 2023-24 season with Charlotte but they traded him to the Thunder. That put Hayward on a talented team where there was no room for him in the rotation. Not how the veteran envisioned his career-ending but Hayward was ready to call it quits.
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