Retirement has come early for 2020s NBA first-round pick Tyrell Terry. After revealing his decision on Instagram Thursday, the Minneapolis native penned a lengthy caption explaining his decision to retire from the NBA after experiencing “the darkest times” while being a professional athlete.
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Terry is a former DeLaSalle High School student-athlete who moved on to play at Stanford for one year, ranking as one of the country’s top college freshmen in the country, Compex reports.
At 22 years old, he was drafted 31st overall by the Dallas Mavericks in the 2020 NBA Draft.
Terry bared his heart in his caption as he parts ways with “the game that has formed a large part of my identity.”
“This message is a very difficult one to share and an emotional one to write,” Terry wrote. “Today I decided to let go of the game that has formed a large part of my identity.”
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“To the point where instead of building me up, it began to destroy me. Where I began to despise and question the value of myself, much more than those surrounding me could ever see or know,” Terry shared.
“Intrusive thoughts, waking up nauseous and finding myself struggling to take normal breaths because of the rock that would sit on my chest that seemed to weigh more than I could carry. This is just a brief description of the anxiety this sport has caused me,” he wrote.
“I am eternally grateful to those who have believed in me and apologize to those that I have let down. But I’m headed down a different path now, one that will hopefully lead to happiness and being able to love myself again,” he added.
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During his four seasons at DeLaSalle, Terry made his mark, helping the team to three state championships on the varsity team.
According to Fan Nation, at the peak of 2022, the NBA Grizzlies signed Terry to a two-way contract, which means he could play both the NBA and its G League affiliate.
