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Gordon Hayward announced his retirement in August. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images)
Gordon Hayward was 27 years old when he joined the Boston Celtics in 2017, fresh off the first All-Star appearance of his career. He fit between Kyrie Irving and Al Horford on a team that had drafted Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Terry Rozier and Marcus Smart over the previous four years. They were loaded.
Only, five minutes into his Boston tenure, Hayward fractured his left tibia and dislocated his ankle. Seven years later, as his former team prepares to raise its championship banner, he has retired after 14 seasons, and it is impossible to process his NBA career without reflecting on how that gruesome injury shaped it.
“I expected things to go a lot differently in my mind when I decided to move and go play in Boston,” Hayward told Yahoo Sports via Zoom on Friday. “I was relatively healthy my first seven years in the NBA — until that major injury, and then it seemed like every year after that it was one thing after another.”
Hayward returned to the Celtics for two more seasons, including a trip to the 2020 Eastern Conference finals — marred again by a sprain to his other ankle. He needed a change and found one in Charlotte, where he averaged an efficient 16-5-4 but dealt with injuries to both of his feet, his hamstrings and his left calf.
“It’s unreal how your body is able to compensate,” Hayward said, “(but) your force has to go somewhere.”
In February, Hayward was traded from Charlotte to Oklahoma City, where he thought he would have a shot to contribute to a contender again, only to discover the Thunder had few playoff minutes for him.
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“I was proud that I got back out on the court,” said Hayward, now 34 years old. “I felt like I got back to the player I was. I had some of my career-best games in Charlotte. I’m at peace with my career and where everything took me. Unfortunately, the team aspect didn’t work out the way I wanted it to, but yeah: It’s hard to think about my career without thinking about Boston and the injury and everything.”
Meanwhile, he watched his former…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/gordon-hayward-retired-despite-interest-from-teams-im-at-peace-with-my-career-141627962.html
Author : Yahoo Sports
Publish date : 2024-09-30 14:16:27
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