Nearly 12 years ago, A gruesome knee injury brought to a conclusion the career of the No. 4 pick in the 2004 NBA Draft by the Los Angeles Clippers. Over the weekend, he retired from “The Association” on his own terms—with three NBA titles after playing an integral role for the five-time defending Western Conference champion Golden State Warriors.
On Friday, reserve guard Shaun Livingston announced his retirement on his Instagram page @sodt1414 following 15 NBA seasons, playing for the Clippers; Oklahoma City Thunder; Washington Wizards; then Charlotte Bobcats, now Charlotte Hornets; Milwaukee Bucks, Cleveland Cavaliers, Brooklyn Nets and Warriors. The 34-year-old from Peoria, IL helped the Warriors reach five consecutive NBA Finals appearances in his five years with the team.
Livingston had signed a three-year, $24 million contract to remain in the Bay Area in 2017 but was waived by the Warriors two months ago to save some salary off their books. He has though discussed remaining with the team, working in their front office.
Livingston shared a statement on his Instagram page and Twitter account to the teammates he played with; his wife and kids and all that were a part of his NBA journey, “After 15 years in the NBA, I’m excited, sad, fortunate and grateful all in one breath. Hard to put into a caption all of the emotions it takes to try and accomplish your dreams,” “I wasn’t supposed to be here. Anybody that has beat the odds understands the mental and emotional strain it takes to inspire yourself on an uphill war, let alone inspire others. ‘The Injury’ gave me a chance to find and prove to myself [and the world] that I wouldn’t be defined by my circumstances With my time in the League what I will be most proud of is the fact that my character, values and faith were tested, and I persevered. To my pops that told me to “go get the ball” I THANK YOU. To my Grandpa that always showed me there was more to life than basketball I THANK YOU. To my Uncles that helped raise me like I was one of their own, THANK YOU. To my wife and kids…the future is BRIGHTER than our past, and I couldn’t see myself taking on this chapter without you. To all my teammates, coaches, TRAINERS, staff, my journey is a collection of experiences, and those of you that helped me along the way, THANK YOU! To all the fans and anybody else that inspired me, supported me, cheered for me, or even said good words about me, THANK YOU. “The greatest gift we can give is service to others.” #Raiseaglass [wine glass emoji].
That injury Livingston suffered, where he tore his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL); posterior cruciate ligament (PCL); medial collateral ligament (MCL); the lateral meniscus and his knee cap and tibiofemoral joint on Feb. 26, 2007 versus the Bobcats while with the Clippers that would have ended the careers of many other athletes, let alone many basketball players. Doctors thought Livingston’s leg would have to be amputated.
He underwent extensive surgery that was performed by well known orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews in Birmingham, AL to repair that knee.
Livingston then had to re-learn to just simply walk before he could even have a though of getting back onto a basketball court, let alone returning to playing against the best basketball players on the planet.
This was a guy who was supposed to be the next Earvin “Magic” Johnson, with his size and ability to make plays for others with his court vision and stellar passing ability, and incredible athleticism. Thoughts of him even playing above the rim, which had been a hallmark of his career from his days at Peoria Central High School to the start of his career in the NBA were long gone.
It was not until June 16, 2008 before doctors gave Livingston the all clear to resume basketball activities.
Unfortunately, the Clippers did not make Livingston a $5.8 million qualifying offer after his contract expired after the 2007-08 season, which made him an unrestricted free agent.
While he received interests from the Minnesota Timberwolves and Portland Trail Blazers about signing him, he signed a reported two-year deal with the Miami Heat on Oct. 3, 2008.
That stint did not last long as he was dealt to the Memphis Grizzlies on Jan. 7, 2009 along with cash considerations in exchange for a Second-Round pick.
On Jan. 7, 2009, Livingston was signed by the Tulsa 66ers, the then NBA D-League, now G-League affiliate of the Thunder. He then signed a multi-year deal with the Thunder on Mar. 31, 2009 but was waived on Dec. 22, 2009.
In the following years, Livingston kept changing address first with the Wizards. Then with the then Bobcats on a two-year, $7 million deal. He was then dealt to the Milwaukee Bucks as part of a three-team deal with the Sacramento Kings and Bobcats. He was traded again on June 26, 2012 to the Houston Rockets, before they waived him. He signed with the Wizards on Nov. 15, 2012 but was waived on two days before Christmas that season, before being claimed by the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Livingston then signed with the Brooklyn Nets in the summer of 2013. In the summer of 2014, he would sign a reported three-year, $16 million deal with the Warriors, where he would be a part of one of the best dynasties in NBA history.
His Warriors teammates had great admiration for the tireless work Livingston displayed in his five seasons with the team, from him always being ready coming off the bench, which set the tone for the rest of the second unit and the younger players on the standard of how the Warriors conducted their business.
The best example of that was how he filled in for injured two-time Kia MVP Stephen Curry during their 2016 postseason run, where the history making 73-win defending champion Warriors lost in The Finals to now four-time Kia MVP of the Lakers LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Livingston joined Boston Celtics’ Hall of Famer and long-time color analyst for the team for NBC Sports Boston Tom Heinsohn to spend at least five seasons with one team and make the NBA Finals each season. Heinsohn helped the Celtics to nine consecutive Finals appearances from 1956-65, where they were crowned NBA champion in eight of those nine seasons.
What Livingston really displayed in his climb back to being relevant in the NBA is his sheer will to not let this horrific injury bring his career to a crashing conclusion.
He reinvented him from being a projected star to a player that just wanted to land with a team and prove he could stick. When one team closed their door, he went to another that had and opening and he took it. He did that again, and again, and again until he found a home, and carved out a niche for himself, which he did for the Warriors, where he became a versatile defender, who could check point guards, shooting guards, and at times small forwards. He was also able to run the offense for head coach Steve Kerr, which allowed Curry and fellow All-Star Klay Thompson to play off the ball and either spot up or come off screens and pin downs for three-pointers, which they would hit a ton of.
“He handled it well,” former NBA guard, Jameer Nelson, who came into the league in that same 2004 draft said over the weekend on NBATV’s “Gametime.” “He came back through adversity and made himself a heck of a career. Played for a couple different teams but found his niche in the league. Went to Golden State, won a couple of championships, and played his role and played it well. He was a mid-range shooter, post-up guy. Ran the team and played as well as he could in his role.”
Former NBA sharp-shooter and studio and sideline reporter for Turner Sports Dennis Scott echoed those same sentiments of Livingston saying, “He showed people if you stick to who you are and you can preserve and get over an injury you can still find a niche in this game.”
“He showed you that get healthy, come in with the second unit, and now you’re going against that second unit, and you can still be effective.”
A decade-and-a-half ago, Shaun Livingston came into the NBA with a lot of hype and promise. Three years into his career, his career was in jeopardy after a devastating knee injury. He battled back, bounced from several teams, but found one a perfect partner in the Golden State Warriors and helped them become a dynasty that won three titles in five straight appearances in the NBA Finals as the representative of the Western Conference.
While his overall career numbers were not spectacular from where he was drafted again No. 4 overall of 6.3 points and 3.0 assists over 833 career games, he found a way to play for a long time in the National Basketball Association and had a major impact both on the floor as a role player and off of it with his work in the Oakland, CA community, to taking part in Warriors camps and being an inspiration to kids where he grew up in Peoria.
Livingston got his shot to play in the pros, and while he will not be a Hall of Famer, he will be remembered as a player that through his perseverance and dedication to get back from a serious knee injury earned the respect and admiration from his Warriors teammates and front office, to his NBA peers and kids who saw him play in person or on television and or in person at a community even he was at or a Warriors camp.
“Shaun Livingston’s story is one of the most inspirational in the history of professional sports,” Warriors general manager Bob Myers said over the weekend. “What he accomplished after suffering so many trials and tribulations early in his career is a true testament to who he is as a person, which has always been characterized by tremendous class, grace and professionalism. He represents everything that you’d want in a professional athlete and, most importantly, in a human being. We appreciate what he did for our team and organization over the last five years, becoming a three-time NBA champion and a key figure on one of the best teams in NBA history. We wish him well as he begins the next phase of his life.”
Information, statistics, and quotations are courtesy of 9/13/19 www.espn.com story, via “The Associated Press,” “3-Time NBA Champion Livingston Retires at 34;” 9/14/19 11:30 a.m. edition of NBATV’s “Gametime,” with Jared Greenberg, Jameer Nelson, and Dennis Scott; 2006-07 Sporting News’ “2006-07 Official NBA Guide,” Page 11; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Heinsohn; and https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shaun_Livingston.
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