Arizona Wildcats react to Tim Duncan’s retirement announcement

Spurs Forward Tim Duncan announced his retirement on Monday, July 11, 2016, and several Arizona Wildcats chimed in on the news.

We all knew the day would come, but maybe not this soon: The Spurs legendary forward Timothy Theodore “Tim” Duncan hung up his kicks and called it a day as a player in the NBA deciding to forgo a farewell tour. It seems his good-bye was a slight wave to fans as he walked off the court into the locker room and never looked back, he had just played his last game at the AT&T Center.

Duncan will not be attending the Spurs press conference on his retirement.

The 40-year-old Duncan played his entire career with the San Antonio Spurs. That’s 19 years folks. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver summed up Duncan’s career perfectly, “Tim Duncan is one of the most dominant players in NBA history. His devotion to excellence and mastery of the game led to five NBA championships, two regular-season MVP awards and a place among the all-time greats, while his understated selflessness made him the ultimate teammate.”

Tim is a positive enigma to most, but now that he has retired, his teammates and those who know him most are telling some fantastic stories about their relationship with him. Even his nicknames were not well-known by some until he retired, names like TD or Timmy. Can’t imagine going up to Duncan and calling him Timmy, but his friends do.

Former Spurs teammate and Arizona Wildcat Sean Elliott‘s sentiment was heartfelt; the two won a title together in 1999:

Their relationship was so unique in that Timmy’s true self came out on camera notably when Elliott was announcing his game after his retirement:

Steve Kerr had some nice words about Duncan (Kerr played with Duncan from 1999-2003 on the Spurs.)

“To just walk away without a press conference is just typical Tim. Modesty. Humility. Just a phenomenal teammate that was so much fun to play with.”

“I think he’s a center. The only reason he’s called a power forward is because he started his career playing next to David [Robinson], but once David left, Timmy was down on the block all the time. I mean, it’s just semantics. … Regardless, he’s certainly a top 10 player of all time. I think you can make that argument real easily.”

Jason Terry came into the league two years after Duncan, and had this to say after the announcement:

“Tim Duncan was a true professional. A champion. A true definition of a franchise player. The way he conducted himself on and off the court should be applauded. For my era, he set the standard for excellence.”

New Orleans’ Pelican Solomon Hill was classy in his good wishes:

Just this morning on SportsCenter, Richard Jefferson mentioned that Tim Duncan was an amusing man, and hope he gets on social media to share his humor with the world.

Andre Iguodala said it plain and simple (yet another nickname):

AG Wildcat Report writer Anthony Gimino pulled out a fun fact for the day:

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So it seems this former Wake Forest Demon Deacon and NBA icon Tim Duncan has made a huge impression on former Arizona Wildcats, and rightly so. Duncan is the epitome of class, humility and played the game of basketball on a hugely public stage in a very private way. It was a good time to retire, most projected he would. Tim Duncan will always be remembered as a winner and possibly the best forward who every played in the NBA!