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Hayward announced Thursday via social media that he has retired from professional basketball.
After an outstanding two-year collegiate run at Butler, Hayward entered the professional ranks and was selected by the Jazz with the No. 9 overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. A one-time All-Star, Hayward carved out a productive 14-year career that included stops with the Celtics, Hornets and Thunder in addition to Utah. He appeared in 835 regular-season games, averaging 15.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.3 three-pointers in 30.7 minutes per contest. After struggling to see minutes with the Thunder following a midseason trade in 2023-24 before becoming a free agent this offseason, Hayward is opting to step away from the game rather than looking to catch on with a contender in a back-end rotation role.
