http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sport...,2155660.story
Orlando Magic forward Pat Garrity retires
Brian Schmitz | Sentinel Staff Writer
September 12, 2008
The Orlando Magic are welcoming a new point guard and saying goodbye to their longest-tenured player.
Forward Pat Garrity, who had been with the Magic longer than any current player on the roster, announced his retirement on Thursday after nine seasons in an Orlando uniform.
Meanwhile, well-traveled veteran Mike Wilks signed as a free agent to be the Magic's third point guard, the Sentinel learned. The club is expected to announce the deal within days.
The 5-foot-10-inch Wilks will add depth behind starter Jameer Nelson and Anthony Johnson. Wilks, 29, signed a one-year deal for $1.04 million.
Garrity's decision was not unexpected, as his playing time had dwindled the last few years.
He became a free agent after last season, and the Magic had no plans to re-sign him.
Garrity, 32, said he actually made his mind up to retire a few months ago, even though the Phoenix Suns and San Antonio Spurs had showed some interest.
"I view it as a happy time. It wasn't really a hard decision," he said from his home Thursday. "Lon [Garrity's agent, Lon Babby] told me to take a month to see if my feelings would change, but that only made me more sure of what I was doing."
Acquired from the Suns in 1999, Garrity finished his career averaging 7.3 points and 2.6 rebounds with the Suns and the Magic.
He posted career highs with 11.1 points and 4.2 rebounds during the 2001-02 season, but injuries would eventually take their toll on Garrity, including a torn ACL in 2003.
Admittedly not a great athlete, Garrity said he lasted longer in the NBA than he expected, largely on the strength of his textbook jump-shot.
"I got more out of it than I ever dreamed as far as financial rewards and the places the NBA has taken me," he said. "For as long as I played, I was never confident I'd have a 10-year career. I got more out of it than I could ever hope for."
Garrity said he will apply at a business school next year and try to earn an MBA. One of the Magic's most active community ambassadors, he said he would like to continue participating in the league's "Basketball Without Borders" program, spreading goodwill and teaching the game in foreign countries.
I wonder if Spurs have given up on Bonner. They went after Najera, Garrity and they sign Tolliver. All are PFs who can shoot 3's.
The strange thing is that I don't know how you can consider Garrity or Tolliver as upgrade over Bonner. Maybe Spurs have working on some trades with Bonner and are looking for a replacement.
And Horry is still available ...
Garrity would have played small forward for the Spurs in a Danny Ferry type role. He doesn't rebound well enough anymore to play power forward. If the Spurs would have signed him, I would have seen it as the Spurs wanting to add another outside shooter to the mix.
Although he's played well against the Spurs in the past, if the rumors of the Spurs being interested are true, I'm glad he decided to retire because the last thing the Spurs need is to become even less athletic.
He fits the Spurs profile....... over 30.
Anyway, the interest in him by the Spurs may have to do with Lon Babby being his agent and more of a courtesy chat.
He would never fit in the spurs and btw he not that type of player that we need....
He isn't quick enough anymore to play small forward.
waiting for some trades
Bonner is way better than Garrity
of course we were
They wanted to sign him so Bonner would have someone he could talk to on the bench.
Same could be said for Danny Ferry when the Spurs signed him.
Garrity is slower than Ferry was and the NBA is faster.
I guess we will have to disagree on this one. I'm convinced that Garrity would have played PF with Spurs.
Garrity is not slower than Ferry was. Ferry had the lateral speed of a pylon. Garrity can actually move his feet. Ferry would make Garrity look like Usain Bolt by comparison.
So a guy who rebounds as well as Damon Stoudemire did last year for the Spurs was going to play power forward in San Antonio?
Okay ..........
Makes sense that they would try to get younger.
Oh yes, he is slower. After all his injuries, he was damn slow.
He ALWAYS played PF in Orlando these past 4 years :
http://www.82games.com/04ORL12C.HTM
http://www.82games.com/0506/05ORL13C.HTM
http://www.82games.com/0607/06ORL12C.HTM
http://www.82games.com/0708/07ORL12C.HTM
Garrity is a very poor rebounding PF but he is a PF. Deal with that.
Yeah and Rashard Lewis started at power forward the entire season last year for the Magic. Do you think Lewis would play power forward on the Spurs?
Last year, Magic were quite a run and gun team. Years before they weren't and Garrity also played PF.Yeah and Rashard Lewis started at power forward the entire season last year for the Magic. Do you think Lewis would play power forward on the Spurs?
There is this guy named Hedo Turkoglu who would like to tell you all about how small forwards on the Spurs turn into power forwards on the Magic.
Turkoglu with the Magic:
http://www.82games.com/0607/06ORL9C.HTM
Turkoglu with the Spurs:
http://82games.com/03SAS12C.HTM
But yeah, if you want to tell people that a guy who rebounded as well as Damon Stoudemire and worse than Michael Finley was going to play power forward on the Spurs, have it at.
He mainly played SF with Orlando and Spurs now play a lot of small ball.
If Turkoglu was with the Spurs today, he would play a lot of PF like Udoka or Finley did.
So a player like Mark Blount would play SF with Spurs ?
Old Garrity is damn slow and played PF these past years. You make tons of sense saying that he would have played SF with Spurs.
If we had a thread about who the Spurs were interesting in each summer, page 1 and 2 would be full of them.
Ugh...I was a sports photog in South Bend when he played for Notre Dame.
And now he's retired? Am I really THAT old?
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