Sport

Struggling basketball star now retired after long run of injuries

HANGING up his sneakers for the final time, Aussie sporting legend Andrew Bogut has played his final professional basketball season.

Announcing his retirement on his own ‘Rogues Bogues’ podcast, the former Sydney Kings star admitted the decision hadn’t been an easy one but said the physical impact of playing had taken its toll.
He said from 2018 onwards, his body was “hanging by a thread” and for two years just getting out of bed had been a struggle, let alone playing or training.
Standing 213cm tall, or seven foot in the old scale, Bogut played 706 game in 14 seasons with the NBA in a professional career that included stints with the Milwaukee Bucks, Dallas Mavericks, Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Lakers and a 2015 Championship with the Golden State Warriors.
Playing with the Kings for two seasons, the 36-year-old parted ways with the club in May this year, just a couple months after the last two games of NBL’s 2019-2020 five game finals series were cancelled because of the Covid-19 outbreak, with the title going to the Perth Wildcats who were 2-1 ahead at the time.
The biggest name to ever play in the NBL, Bogut helped transform the Sydney Kings and highlight the NBL on a global scale, with chairman and owner Paul Smith paying tribute to his contributions to the club.
“The true legacy and pathways that Andrew has laid and what he has contributed to this point, will only be appreciated over time, as he brings his experience, persona and business acumen to our sport,” he said.