Danilo Gallinari, the longtime NBA forward who played for eight different teams, announced his retirement on Tuesday.
The 37-year-old Gallinari, the sixth overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft, last played with Vaqueros de Bayamón of Puerto Rico’s Baloncesto Superior Nacional after signing with the team in January. He was MVP of the league’s finals after leading the side to its 17th title.
Gallinari spent parts of three seasons in New York after being drafted by the Knicks. His next stop was in Denver after being acquired by the Nuggets in a three-team trade that brought Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups to New York.
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During his six years in Denver, Gallinari suffered the first of two ACL tears in his career. He would play three more seasons with the Nuggets after missing the 2013-14 campaign before being dealt to the Los Angeles Clippers.
Gallinari’s time in LA would be short as he was traded in a package along with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to the Oklahoma City Thunder in July 2019 for Paul George.
Following one season with the Thunder, Gallinari would move on to the Atlanta Hawks for two seasons before suffering another ACL injury. He played his final NBA season in 2023-24 with the Washington Wizards, Detroit Pistons and Milwaukee Bucks.
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Gallinari is the second-highest drafted Italian player ever after Andrea Bargnani, who was taken No. 1 overall in 2006 by the Toronto Raptors. His 11,607 points are the most in NBA history by an Italian player.