While it was quickly overshadowed a couple days later by a flurry of free agent deals and trade agreements, Darren Collison‘s decision to announce his retirement in June at age 31 was one of the most surprising developments of the NBA offseason.
Nearly three months after announcing that decision, Collison spoke to Mark Montieth of Pacers.com about his unexpected retirement, admitting that he’ll miss the annual tradition of reporting to training camp for a new season.
“I didn’t think I would retire after 10 years,” Collison said. “I thought I would play for a very long time. I still want to. It’s my heart and passion.”
However, as Montieth writes, Collison’s desire to move onto a new phase of his life – which involves devoting more time to his Jehovah’s Witness ministry and spending more time with his family – trumped his desire to continue his NBA career. According to Montieth, Collison is also working with Pro’s Vision, a training company that works primarily with young athletes.
“I can’t stress enough that basketball isn’t everything,” Collison said. “Athletes think making the NBA is a success story, but a success story is being able to provide for yourself and your family. There are a lot of things you can do to become successful.”
Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:
- NBA teams were informed this week that they’ll be required to certify and submit the precise height and age of all their players within the first week of training camp, reports Marc Stein of The New York Times (Twitter link). As Stein explains (via Twitter), some players have been listed at the wrong height for years and the league would like to change that. The case of Buddy Hield‘s incorrectly-listed age from last year was also among the motivating factors for the new policy, Stein adds (via Twitter).
- Kevin O’Connor of The Ringer identifies seven players on probable playoff teams who could take a leap during the 2019-20 season and help solidify their respective teams as legit contenders. Aaron Gordon (Magic), Josh Richardson (Sixers), and Anfernee Simons (Trail Blazers) are among the breakout candidates on O’Connor’s list.
- Veteran agent Raymond Brothers has joined Roc Nation Sports as the agency’s director of basketball and sports technology/specialty projects, tweets ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. Brothers represents several NBA clients, including Spencer Dinwiddie, Markelle Fultz, and D.J. Augustin.
More must-reads: