Andrei Kirilenko officially announced his retirement Tuesday, EuroHoops reports. "This is the end of my career as a player," Kirilenko said. "It's enough. I was playing for a long time and with enough success, but now it's my time to have a different role

Kirilenko officially announced his retirement Tuesday, EuroHoops reports. "This is the end of my career as a player," Kirilenko said. "It's enough. I was playing for a long time and with enough success, but now it's my time to have a different role in basketball"

Analysis:

Reports surfaced at the beginning of the month suggesting that Kirilenko had opted to retire, but about a week later he revealed that he hadn't yet made up his mind. After a couple more weeks of deliberation, Kirilenko, a 13-year NBA veteran, will step away from the game with the expectation that he will work with the Russian basketball federation in some capacity. Kirilenko began last season with the Nets but appeared in only seven games before leaving the team, which led to a mid-season trade to Philadelphia. Kirilenko never reported to the 76ers.