Stephen Jackson announces retirement after 14 NBA seasons
The sometimes controversial and always outspoken Stephen Jackson is ready to call it a career after 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association.
Jackson, 37, announced his intentions to retire on his official Instagram account, promoting a retirement party set to take place Friday.
He was drafted with the No. 47 pick by the Phoenix Suns in 1997, although it would be several years before he'd see his first taste of NBA action, as the Suns waived him prior to the start of the season.
Jackson bounced around leagues in different parts of the world before returning to the NBA in 2000-01 with the then-New Jersey Nets.
Following stints with the San Antonio Spurs (with whom he won the only NBA championship of his career in 2003) and Atlanta Hawks, Jackson found himself with the Indiana Pacers, where he played an integral role in one of the lowest moments in the history of the league in 2004: "The Malice at the Palace."
He received a 30-game suspension from the league for jumping into the stands and getting physical with Detroit Pistons fans.
In January of 2007, the Pacers dealt Jackson to the Golden State Warriors in an eight-player trade. Jackson helped lead the Warriors to one of the biggest upsets in league history, eliminating the top-seeded Dallas Mavericks as a No. 8 seed in the opening round of the playoffs.
He averaged a career-high 21.1 points in 72 games with the Charlotte Bobcats (now Hornets) in 2009-10. The twilight of his career included a stop in Milwaukee, a return to the Spurs, and a short-lived run with the Los Angeles Clippers.
In 858 career outings, Jackson averaged 15.1 points on 41.4 percent shooting to go with 3.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and a PER of 14.3.
From run-ins with the law and Twitter threats, to numerous rap videos and a limitless amount of memorable quotes, Jackson always knew how to grab people's attention.
He was definitely one of a kind.