Veteran guard Malcolm Brogdon, who won NBA Sixth Man of the Year honors during his lone season with the Celtics in 2022-23, announced his retirement from the NBA on Wednesday.
“I have proudly given my mind, body, and spirit to the game over the last few decades,” Brogdon said in a statement to ESPN. “With the many sacrifices it took to get here, I have received many rewards. I am deeply grateful to have arrived to this point on my own terms and now to be able to reap the benefits of my career with my family and friends. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to all who have had a place in my journey.”
Drafted 36th overall out of Virginia in 2016, Brogdon played for Milwaukee, Indiana, Boston, Portland and Washington during a nine-year NBA career. He averaged 14.9 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game for the Celtics, who traded him as part of the package to acquire Jrue Holiday in 2023.
Joe Mazzulla was a first-year head coach during Brogdon’s time on Causeway Street. Brogdon accepted a bench role behind Marcus Smart and Derrick White that season after starting every game he played over the previous four campaigns.
“Obviously, he was the Sixth Man of the Year,” Mazzulla said before Wednesday’s Celtics preseason game at TD Garden. “It was our first year together. I appreciate the grace that he showed and the patience that he showed and the openness that he showed, coming into a place and then working with a first-time coach. He did a lot for us, obviously, on the court, but he was really good off the floor, just with his family and getting to know them here.
“So I look at him and look at a guy that kind of has an identity and knows who he is and will be able to transition into anything that he does because of his work ethic and his mentality, but also he just takes pride in learning and being well-educated. So I think anything he does, he’ll be good at, and I’m glad I got to coach him. He did a lot of good stuff for us.”
The 32-year-old Brodgon signed a training camp contract with the New York Knicks in September and had been competing for a roster spot with Landry Shamet and Garrison Matthews. ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Brogdon was in line to make the Knicks’ 15-man roster, but he opted to retire instead.
The Celtics will visit the Knicks next Friday in the second regular-season game for both teams.