"Miss u goat": Fans pay homage to Rudy Gay after former Grizzlies star calls time on 18-year NBA career

After an 18-year career, Rudy Gay has announced his retirement from professional basketball. Gay informed hoops fans of his decision through an article on "The Players' Tribune."

In the article, Gay took the time to talk about memories of his career, from college to the NBA. He also talked about his family and his decision to retire.

After the article was published, Gay posted about it on his X account (formerly Twitter).

Several fans flocked to the comments section of Gay's post. Some shared their favorite moments from his career while other just told him they missed him.

"Miss u goat," one fan tweeted.

"Thank you for all that you've given us, Rudy Gay. As a Spurs fan, I truly appreciate your time as a Spur. I really enjoyed your game, and how hard you played, even through some really tough circumstances that first year," another person said.

"Watched you since you UConn days. Enjoy! You had a great career," one person tweeted.

Meanwhile, other fans, including the Baltimore Ravens, took the time to congratulate him on his wonderful career and his retirement.

"Congrats on a great career Rudy. One of the most underrated scorers in his prime," one person said.

"Congrats on a great career! 18 years of the grind, excited to see what you in retirement," another person said.

"Congrats on a great career. We'll see you at a game soon!" the Baltimore Ravens tweeted.

Rudy Gay began his career as a member of the Memphis Grizzlies. He was selected eighth overall by the Houston Rockets but was later traded to Memphis.

He spent the first six-and-a-half seasons of his career with the Grizzlies. Halfway through his seventh year in the league, he was traded to the Toronto Raptors. He also had stints with the Sacramento Kings, San Antonio Spurs and Utah Jazz.

He signed an "Exhibit 9" contract with the Golden State Warriors ahead of the 2023-24 season. However, he was cut before opening day.

Gay played a total of 1120 career games. He averaged 15.8 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.1 steals throughout his career.

---

Rudy Gay talks about following Carmelo Anthony's blueprint for success

Rudy Gay gave props to several players in his article. He talked about Patty Mills, Manu Ginobili, Chris Paul and Damon Stoudamire among others. Gay also mentioned 10-time NBA All-Star Carmelo Anthony.

Anthony might be known as a New York legend for his time at Syracuse as well as his years with the Knicks. However, Melo also spent his youth playing high school basketball in Baltimore, Maryland. This also happens to be Gay's hometown.

In his article on "The Players' Tribune", Gay talked about following the example that Anthony set for athletes from his hometown. According to Gay, Anthony inspired him to "show out for Baltimore in the biggest stage possible."

Rudy Gay and Carmelo Anthony had the opportunity to play against each other in the NBA. They played a total of 31 games against each other, all coming in the regular season. Of those 31 matchups, Anthony's team came out victorious 18 times.