With NBA free agency set to begin on Monday at 6 p.m. ET, countless players will be looking forward to joining new teams or possibly re-signing with their current teams.
The Pistons are expected to be a factor in free agency after having a rather successful 2024-25 season, which included a playoff appearance. Detroit will look to sign some new guys while also attempting to re-sign a player or two.
However, one ex-Pistons player has decided that he doesn’t want to go through the free agent carousel anymore and has called it a career after 10 years.
On Sunday, veteran forward Bojan Bogdanovic announced his retirement from the NBA in a message posted on social media. The ex-Detroit forward cited a foot injury, which he has been battling to get back on the court, as the reason why he’s stepping away.
"Sometimes in life, you don't choose the moment. The moment chooses you, Bogdanovic wrote on Instagram. After 14 months of battling a foot injury, two surgeries and countless efforts to get back on the court, the time has come to close a chapter.
After more than two decades in the game, the moment has arrived to say goodbye to basketball. Not just as a sport, but as a part of who I am."
“After more than two decades in the game, the moment has arrived to say goodbye to basketball. Not just as a sport, but as a part of who I am.”
In his message, Bogdanovic took the opportunity to highlight his basketball career, which began overseas with Real Madrid in 2007-08 and continued in the Association with six different teams, including Detroit.
The former Pistons forward also mentioned the pride he had when he got a chance to play for the Croatian National Team in international play. The 36-year-old Bogdanovic joined the Pistons for the 2022-23 season.
The Utah Jazz traded the veteran forward to the Motor City in exchange for Kelly Olynyk, Saben Lee, and cash.
Detroit signed Bogdanovic to a two-year, $39 million extension a month after the trade. During that season, the veteran forward averaged 21.6 points per game on 48.8 percent shooting from the field and 41.1 percent from beyond the arc.
Bogdanovic spent the first half of the 2023-24 season with the Pistons before being traded to the New York Knicks in February 2024. The veteran forward scored 20.2 points per game on 46.8 percent shooting from the field and 41.5 percent from deep in 28 games in Detroit.
However, he couldn’t replicate that same scoring prowess with the Knicks as he was traded to the Brooklyn Nets in the Mikal Bridges deal before the 2024-25 campaign began.
The ex-Piston didn’t play a single game in his second stint with the Nets due to the debilitating foot injury. Brooklyn ultimately waived him in February of this year.
Even though it’s tough to see players retire due to injury, the former Pistons forward had a great pro hoops career in the NBA and overseas. Bogdanovic was able to play at the highest level and was productive in his last full season in the league.
