Former No. 1 pick Kenyon Martin announces his retirement

Former No. 1 draft pick Kenyon Martin announced his retirement from professional basketball.

SI Wire | Jul 2, 2015

Former No. 1 pick Kenyon Martin announces his retirement /

Former No. 1 draft pick Kenyon Martin announced his retirement from professional basketball to Yahoo! Sports on Thursday.

Martin was selected No. 1 by the then-New Jersey Nets back in 2000. He went on to have a 15-year NBA career that spanned five different teams.

The 37-year-old most recently played for the Milwaukee Bucks, appearing in 11 games and logging 104 minutes in 2014–15.

“It's been a great 15 years,” Martin told Yahoo! Sports. “Thanks to all the fans that supported me over the years. But a time does come when you have to walk away, and the time is now for me. I'm ready for the next chapter of my life. I would like to thank the Nets, Nuggets, Clippers, Knicks and Bucks for the opportunity to play the game that I love.”

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Martin helped the Nets reach two straight NBA Finals in 2002 and 2003. His best year came in 2003–04, when he averaged career highs of 16.7 points and 9.5 rebounds while shooting 48.8% from the field.

After four years with the Nets he was traded to the Denver Nuggets, where he spent the next seven seasons. After averaging 11.5 points and 9.4 rebounds for Denver in 2009–10, Martin did not reach double figures in scoring again, nor did he play in 50 games in a season again.

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Martin told Yahoo that he would consider something in coaching in the future “if something comes up.”

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