Amar’e Stoudemire decided to hang up his jersey for good but before he did so, he signed a one-day contract with New York so he could retire a Knick.
It might be considered a slap in the face to the Phoenix Suns where Stoudemire spent his better days alongside Steve Nash who also fell apart when he left the team. Amar’e however was important to New York when he arrived. The Knicks had missed out on LeBron James who chose to team up with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh on the Miami Heat. Stoudemire was considered a great second option and was supposed to bring New York back. That first season he played extremely well but then the Knicks gutted their team to trade for Carmelo Anthony. The duo never quite gelled together and Amare’s injuries began to get the better of him and most of his days were spent on the bench. He was eventually waived by the Knicks and joined the Dallas Mavericks then the Miami Heat, but never got back to what he once was.
“My heart had always remained in the Big Apple”, Amar’e said. He previously lamented that he and Carmelo weren’t used properly together and probably regrets things didn’t go as well as everyone had hoped.
Amar’e Stoudemire was a six-time All-Star and averaged 18.9 points and 7.8 rebounds in his 14-year career.
*Read his retirement announcement in the gallery above*
