NBA 2018: 5 Lesser Known Retirements This Past Offseason

#2 Nick Collison

Nick Collison

Nick Collison, picked 12th overall in the famous 2003 Draft by the Seattle SuperSonics, played all of his 14 years in the league with the same franchise [Seattle SuperSonics changed to the Oklahoma City Thunder in before the 2008-09 season].

A 6"10' forward, Collison entered the league after all of his four years at Kansas. Unfortunately, with injuries to both his shoulders, he missed his entire rookie season and only made his debut in the 2004-05 season. His best seasons as a player, purely by numbers, came in the franchise's last two seasons in Seattle [2006-08].

After that, being restricted athletically and also aging, Collison was always the veteran in the locker room who would be the last string forward option. Since 2010, he only signed veteran deals whether those are long-term extensions or 1-year minimum contracts.

Internationally, Collison represented the USA only in one tournament at the senior level, where he was part of the gold medal winning team - 2003 FIBA Americas. After the Thunder were eliminated in the 2018 NBA Playoffs, Collison announced his retirement.