San Antonio Spurs: Boris Diaw officially retires from NBA

Fan favorite power forward Boris Diaw has formally retired from the NBA at the age of 36. He spent five seasons as a member of the San Antonio Spurs and played an integral role in the 2014 Championship run.

The world’s classiest man has finally decided to step away from the game, as reported by Sportando via Twitter. Power forward Boris Diaw has officially announced his retirement from the NBA after 14 seasons. His five years in San Antonio were headlined by two trips to the Finals and one Championship victory.

At 6’8, Diaw is one of the most spectacular playmakers to ever play his position. Between his court vision, creativity and natural ability to find the open man, Diaw’s passing is unrivaled. During the 2014 Finals, he led San Antonio in assists with 5.8 per contest, eclipsing point guard Tony Parker by 1.2 dimes per night. He also put up 6.2 points and 8.6 rebounds over the course of those five games and played a crucial role in slowing forward LeBron James in his prime.

Boris Diaw announced he has retired from professional basketball. He spent 14 seasons in the NBA and won the NBA title with the San Antonio Spurs in 2014.

— Sportando (@Sportando) September 6, 2018

Diaw was essentially a point guard trapped in a power forward’s body. He made the best of his skills and constantly pushed himself and his teammates further toward victory on a night-to-night basis.

His relationship with the aforementioned Parker was affirmed by their time playing together on the French national team over the years. The tandem spent the summer between the 2013-2014 season competing at EuroBasket 2013, which they won just weeks before the championship run began.

Diaw averaged 7.4 points, 2.6 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game in his time as a Spur. His floor-spacing ability and craftiness beautifully complimented the latter stages of legend Tim Duncan’s career.

Few role players could change the entire outlook of a team with their presence alone, but Diaw forced opponents to think outside the box when defending against San Antonio. This resulted in lots of defensive mismatches which ultimately led to wins. Box scores don’t do justice to the impact Diaw had on the Spurs, whether it be on the hardwood or in the locker room.

His elegant style, passion for cappuccinos and big personality only graced San Antonio for a quick five years, but his impact will linger forever. Congratulations, Boris!