Former Raptors Legend Announces Retirement from Basketball
Marc Gasol is officially calling it quits.
After 13 NBA seasons and seven more in Spain, the 39-year-old former Toronto Raptors big man has announced his retirement from professional basketball.
Gasol last played for Bàsquet Girona, a team he founded in 2014. He averaged 10.5 points and 5.7 rebounds per game across 30 games for Girona last year while also serving as the team's president. He had not played this season.
The 6-foot-11 Spaniard retires as a three-time All-Star and two-time All-NBA player who earned the Defensive Player of the Year award in 2013 and helped lead Toronto to an NBA championship in 2019.
He played parts of two seasons in Toronto, having been acquired by the organization at the trade deadline in 2019 for Jonas Valanciunas and Delon Wright. Before that, Gasol spent 11 seasons with the Memphis Grizzlies where he's the second-all-time leading scorer for the organization. He will reportedly have his No. 33 jersey retired by the organization at some point in the future, per Shams Charania.
Gasol was a key member of Toronto's championship team, helping to anchor the defense and shut down Joel Embiid during Toronto's legendary seven-game series against the Philadelphia 76ers. He began to slow down in his second season with the Raptors and wasn't the same player following the COVID-19 lockdown.
Following the 2020 season, Gasol signed a two-year deal with the Los Angeles Lakers. He played just one season in L.A. before heading back overseas.
Gasol helped to lead the Spanish Men's National team to two World Cup gold medals, two FIBA EuroBasket gold medals, and two silver medals at the Olympics.
