Zydrunas Ilgauskas will retire from the NBA after 13 seasons in the league, 12 of which were spent with the Cleveland Cavaliers, reports Tom Reed of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Ilguaskas spent last season with the Miami Heat, joining longtime teammate LeBron James in South Beach in an attempt to win an NBA championship. (That attempt failed.)
Zydrunas Ilgauskas Retires After 13 Seasons, Most With Cavaliers
Zydrunas Ilgauskas has decided to retire after 13 season in the NBA. He made two All-Star Games as the Cleveland Cavaliers’ center. He followed LeBron James to the Miami Heat last season.
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Ilgauskas, now 36 years old, was a first-round pick of the Cavs in 1996, and joined the team a year later. He battled repeated foot injuries early in his career, but turned into a dependable center starting around 2002 and eventually making the 2003 and 2005 All-Star teams. He was the team's starting center from LeBron's entry into the league until 2009-10, when the Cavs brought in Shaquille O'Neal. Big Z started just six games that season, and was traded to the Washington Wizards in a midseason cap dump. He never played a game for the Wiz, though, and accepted a buy-out quickly. He then signed with the Cavs on a minimum deal for the stretch run and playoffs.
Big Z started 51 games for the Heat last season, but was pushed to the fringe of the rotation for the team’s playoff run. He told the Plain Dealer’s Reed that he will visit his parents in Lithuania before making a decision on whether to continue to work in the NBA.
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