Before going to bed last night, a friend suddenly sent a WeChat message - Aldridge retired. I was stunned to see this message, then opened the calendar to check the date, because I suspected that I had crossed over to April Fool's Day! After determining that this day was not April 1st, I opened a certain flutter, saw the official release of the news, stunned for a long time, still can not believe this fact.
La Marcus Aldridge, 2.11 meters tall, plays as a big forward, was selected by the Chicago Bulls with the second pick in the first round in 2006, then traded to the Portland Trail Blazers, joined the San Antonio Spurs in 2015, joined the Brooklyn Nets in 2021... After these sentences flashed through my mind, my eyes were still a little sluggish. After a while, I think we should recall together, Aldridge's wonderful life so far...
Born in Texas, Ade was diagnosed with a clinical death by doctors at birth, but then miraculously came back to life. As a price, Ard has had heart problems from time to time since he was a child. In the fourth grade, Ade's height was already superior to that of children of the same age, but his limbs were very uncoordinated. It wasn't until he entered high school, with his own efforts and the guidance of his mentor Robert Allen, that he gradually became a great player.
After two years at the University of Texas, Ard decided to run in the draft. In his rookie season, Ade played more often as a substitute, averaging only 9 points and 5 rebounds per game. However, from the second year, Ade instantly became the league's best interior player - averaging 18 points, 8 rebounds and 2 assists per game, and the Torn City with Ard, Roy and Auden was also seen as another promising youth army.
But that era was no better than now, when Ade was always criticized for being soft on the ball. Even though Ade is already averaging 22 points and 9 rebounds per game in the fifth year of his career, many people still question his strength. In the playoffs, however, all doubts were shattered by Ader's performance — in the 2014 playoffs, Ader became a nightmare for the Houstonians. In the first game of the series, Ard slashed 46 points and 18 rebounds to lead the team to victory. In the second game, Ade scored 43 points and 8 rebounds to successfully defend the team's home advantage. In the 2015 playoffs, Ade recorded a large double-double of 32 points, 14 rebounds and 24 points and 14 rebounds in the series with the Grizzlies.
In this way, Ard became the big man that all teams in the league dreamed of. In the summer of 2015, Ader returned to Texas to join the Spurs. However, Leonard was injured and subsequently left the team, and Aldridge became the only pillar of the Holy City's "post-Duncan era". Until this year, Ard, who turned 36 and entered the end of his career, decided to give up for the championship ring and joined the Nets after reaching a buyout agreement with the Spurs.
In his five games for the Nets, Ade averaged 13 points, five rebounds and three assists per game, and he was like mercury on the Nets' offensive end. Then there was the sudden heart upset, missing the game. While the fans were looking forward to Ade's return, the irregularity of the heart beat suddenly brought his career to an abrupt end.
Actually, when we recall Ade's career. Heart problems have been teasing his career from time to time – missing 9 games in his rookie season due to expected syndrome due to heart defects; Ade also had heart stabilization surgery in 2011, and doctors said everything was fine; in 2017, Ade missed games because of "mild arrhythmias"... We all thought it was just a minor problem, and then we didn't realize that it wasn't a player, not a team, not even an injury in the traditional sense, but his own heart that finally beat Aldridge.
The decision to leave the arena is more difficult for Ade than anyone else. But perhaps, it was also a relief for him. From childhood hunger, he struggled on the basketball court for more than two decades. Aldridge, it's time to let go of everything and enjoy your life.