Former Portland Trail Blazers guard Anfernee Simons posted a farewell message to Rip City on his Instagram page on Monday.
Simons, traded to the Boston Celtics for guard Jrue Holiday after seven seasons with the Blazers stated the following:
“PDX, I appreciate you for bringing in a 19 year old who never left Florida all the way across the country. Took me a few years to get comfortable but eventually became home. My time here I went from a kid to a man. To all my teammates and coaches since my rookie year, I appreciate y’all for making great memories, relationships, and making me feel comfortable. Thank you to everybody in the front office for the support as well. To the fans I appreciate you guys support through the ups and downs. God doesn’t give us challenges or changes we can’t handle. A new journey begins but the goals remain the same.”
Former Blazers star Damian Lillard, who mentored Simons during their five seasons together in Portland, responded to the post with: “Well done brother. Proud of you!”
The 6-foot-3 Simons spent the first three seasons of his career as a backup before becoming a starter during the second half of the 2021-22 season.
Simons led the team in scoring each of the past two seasons and finished his seven-year run with a 15-point scoring average, to go along with 3.3 assists.
-- Aaron Fentress | afentress@Oregonian.com | @AaronJFentress (Twitter), @AaronJFentress (Instagram), @AaronFentress (Facebook)
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