Recently, former Utah Jazz star Gordon Hayward announced his retirement from the NBA after a long and successful career. While he was able to somewhat resurrect his career after a devastating leg injury to begin his tenure with the Boston Celtics, Hayward's prime days were with the Jazz, where he led them on several forays into the NBA playoffs.

Throughout his career, Hayward matched up with many legends and iconic franchises, including Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers. Recently, Hayward recalled a hilarious story from one of those matchups, including Metta World Peace, then known as Ron Artest, comparing him to a prevalent pop star.

“I remember, and this probably didn’t have to do with I was white, but maybe my face and hair and everything, but we played the Lakers, I think it was preseason,” said Hayward, via The Dan LeBatard Show. “They had Ron Artest and I checked in the game, and he like looks at me, then looks back at Kobe, then looks back at me, and he’s like, ‘Hey Kobe,’ and he’s pointing at me and says ‘just throw me the ball in the post, look who’s guarding me, I got Bieber guarding me.’ And sure enough he just posted me up, and this was when Ron Artest was really good, I had no chance of guarding him. I think coach took me out, sat right back down.”

A successful career

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Gordon Hayward (33) warms up before the game between the Dallas Mavericks and the Oklahoma City Thunder in game four of the second round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at American Airlines Center.
Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

In addition to the story above, Hayward was also on the floor for the late Kobe Bryant's final game in the NBA, in which he scored 60 points on 50 shot attempts.

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Of course, Hayward's career extended beyond just being an observer of historic moments and funny stories.

In his own right, Hayward was one of the better wings in the NBA, using his speed, size, and shooting touch to consistently keep defenders off balance and help establish at least some relevancy for the Jazz, including helping them upset the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round of the 2017 playoffs before running into Kevin Durant and the Golden State Warriors in round two.

As previously referenced, Hayward's career took a frightening turn in October 2017 when he broke his leg in gruesome fashion vs the Cleveland Cavaliers just a few minutes into his Celtics tenure. While he was able to ultimately get back on the floor the following season and then enjoy some quality production with the Charlotte Hornets, he will always be a legend in the hearts of Jazz fans.