Heat forward Shane Battier says that he’ll “probably” retire after this season, writes Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel.
“In all honesty, this is probably my last year, and so, I’m not saving myself for anything,” he said. “My mindset is really, ‘Just go ’til the wheels fall off.’ If that means I crash and burn at Christmas, that’s the way I go out. “But I’m not saving myself for anything. My role now, with this starting lineup, is just playing my tail off and bring energy and, you know, go as long as I can go.”
Battier has found himself the starting power forward the past seven games and leads the NBA with eight charges drawn. Couple that with some serious banging down low for rebounds, and Battier has taken a beating early on in the 2013/14 campaign. Coming into 2013/14, Battier owned career averages of 9.0 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.0 steals and 1.0 blocks over 904 career games with the Rockets, Grizzlies, and Heat. The former Duke star has been to the playoffs in nine of his 12 seasons in the NBA.
Shane Battier should “Probably Not” retire. He’s long over-due to get his averages up. He’s an elite player with the stats of a walk-on. That’s incredulous!
All he does is win. He means so much to this Heat team. His numbers dont do him justice. He brings something to every aspect of the game. I know that once his NBA career is over, he’ll be doing something much greater
I always love reading Battier’s insights on basketball and life