American basketball player Derrick Rose, the youngest NBA MVP, announced his retirement after 16 seasons on the court, in a press release and on social networks on Thursday.
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“ The next chapter is meant to pursue my dreams as well as share my success “, the 35-year-old playmaker told the American sports magazine The Athletic.
Elected MVP in 2011 at just 22 years old, Derrick Rose remains the youngest player to have won this distinction in the American basketball league.
After sixteen seasons spent among others at the Chicago Bulls, the New York Knicks and the Cleveland Cavaliers, Rose bows out, wishing to “show the world” the man he is “beyond the world of basketball”.
“ Whether for good or bad, everyone has a certain story in their life (…) Even if I could, I would not change anything about mine, because it is what allowed me to find true joy “, he added in the press release.
On his Instagram account, Derrick Rose published a photo in which he appears in front of a chess board holding a newspaper, where a message intended for basketball is written.
“ Thank you, my first love, you believed in me, through the ups and downs (…) when everything seemed uncertain (…) You made every morning and night we spent together worth every drop of sweat (…) You showed me that passion is something to be cherished, making sure I put my all into every dribble, every shot, every game “, we can read.
This elegant leader saw his career disrupted by multiple injuries, particularly to his knees. In 2012, “D-Rose”, then in the Bulls jersey, ruptured his anterior cruciate knee ligament, while his team had serious options to win the NBA title. He also had to give up participating in the London Olympic Games the same year.
He averages 17.4 points and 5.2 assists in 723 games played.