After 12 professional seasons with four different teams, four-time NBA All-Star guard Kemba Walker is retiring.
Walker announced the news Tuesday on his social media, issuing a statement along with the announcement.
Thank you, basketball. pic.twitter.com/gLUbQnZMP5
— Kemba Walker (@KembaWalker) July 2, 2024
Walker made sure to thank God, the game of basketball, his parents, coaches, teammates, and others. He closed the statement with, “Basketball will forever be a part of my life, so this isn’t goodbye. I’m excited for what’s next.”
Walker was drafted ninth overall in the 2011 NBA Draft by the Charlotte Bobcats. His draft stock was elevated thanks in part to making one of the most memorable shots in college basketball history, as he hit a stepback buzzer-beater to lead the UConn Huskies past the Pittsburgh Panthers into the semifinals of the Big East Tournament. UConn, who needed to win five games in five days to make the NCAA Tournament, did just that and went on to win the 2011 NCAA Tournament behind Walker, who was named the Final Four’s Most Outstanding Player.
He went on to play his first eight professional seasons for Charlotte, averaging 19.8 points and 5.5 assists per game in 605 career appearances. Walker scored 12,009 career points for the Bobcats/Hornets, becoming the first player in franchise history to cross the 10,000-point mark. Three of his four All-Star appearances came with Charlotte, as well.
Walker was dealt to the Boston Celtics via a sign-and-trade in July 2019. He played just 99 games for Boston over his two seasons due to injuries and the COVID shutdown. He made the All-Star team again in his first year with Boston but was sent to the Oklahoma City Thunder in a trade in the summer of 2021. Oklahoma City bought out Walker’s contract, and he signed with the New York Knicks, where he’s most remembered for a triple-double in New York’s Christmas Day 2021 win over the Atlanta Hawks.
The former UConn guard signed with the Dallas Mavericks in 2023 but played in just nine games before being waived. He spent one season in Monaco before announcing his retirement.
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