Marc Gasol has officially announced his retirement from professional basketball. After a career spanning 13 seasons in the NBA and seven in Spain, the 39-year-old former Toronto Raptors center concluded his playing days.
Gasol’s final stint was with Bàsquet Girona, a team he founded in 2014. In his last season with Girona, he averaged 10.5 points and 5.7 rebounds per game across 30 appearances, concurrently serving as the team’s president. Although he did not play in the current season, Gasol leaves behind an impressive legacy as a three-time All-Star and two-time All-NBA player. Notably, he received the Defensive Player of the Year award in 2013 and played a pivotal role in leading the Toronto Raptors to an NBA championship in 2019. Acquired by the Raptors at the trade deadline in 2019, Gasol played parts of two seasons in Toronto before starting his career with the Memphis Grizzlies, where he stands as the second-all-time leading scorer for the franchise after spending 11 seasons there. Shams Charania reports that the Raptors plan to retire Gasol’s No. 33 jersey in the future. Gasol played a crucial role in Toronto’s championship run, contributing significantly to their defense and playing a key role in limiting Joel Embiid during the memorable seven-game series against the Philadelphia 76ers. However, his performance began to decline in his second season with the Raptors, particularly after the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown.
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