After signing with the Pelicans earlier this week, Martell Webster has decided to leave training camp and retire from basketball.
Webster made the announcement on Twitter, writing, “I Thank the amazing organization in New Orleans for the opportunity to play, I’ve made the decision to hang the [shoe icon] and return to the fam.”
Webster was in camp on a non-guaranteed contract, so the Pelicans won’t owe him anything. New Orleans had the maximum 20 players in camp, so Webster’s departure creates an opening.
Now 30, Webster hadn’t played an NBA game since undergoing surgery in November of 2015 to repair labrum and cartilage damage in his right hip. He played 32 games for the Wizards during the 2014/15 season, but the team waived him after the injury, which was believed to be career-threatening.
The Trail Blazers selected Webster with the sixth pick in the 2005 draft, and he spent five years in Portland before being traded to Minnesota. He was with the Wolves for two seasons and the Wizards for three.