Former Golden State Warriors forward David West led a long and productive career. The North Carolina native played 15 seasons and won two championships, both with the Warriors.
It seemed like the big man had a season or two left in the tank after the championships, at least as a useful bench player.
However, the two-time All-Star called it quits this summer, and Monte Poole of NBC Bay Area got the inside scoop on West's reasons for retirement.
West recounts a game last season in which he attempted to stay in front of Lakers guard Josh Hart, and his body simply wouldn't allow him to do it.
“After a couple plays, I said to myself, ‘Dude, you're tripping. You're tripping. You need to sit your ass down somewhere.' “
After taking some time to contemplate his future this summer, West knew it was time to go.
“I took a month. Took another month. The desire to prepare just didn't come,” he said. “When that didn't come, I knew it was time.”
West realized he was at the stage in his life when he could no longer keep up with the competition, and he decided to go out on top.
“Sometimes it happens in a game. Sometimes it happens when you're stretching or before a game or in practice or you wake up the next day and you can't move. All of those things force you to evaluate whether you should keep playing. It wasn't Josh Hart, specifically, but it was plays like that that happen over the course of your last few years that, when you come to a head, and there are multiple plays, you can't run the risk of this becoming an every night occurrence.”
While it's true he might be a bit outclassed by the youngsters today, West was, without doubt, a great player who left his mark on the game.
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