Mallorcan Àlex Abrines retires from basketball: "It wasn't an easy decision, but it was a well-thought-out one."
He had one more year left on his contract with Barça, but they reached an agreement to terminate it.
PalmBarça's Mallorcan forward and Spanish international Àlex Abrines, who will turn 32 on August 1, announced this Tuesday in a message posted on social media that he is retiring from professional basketball. The player had a contract with the Catalan club until June 30, 2026, but both parties have reached an agreement to terminate this link, according to the Catalan club.
Abrines, who had recently explained that he was considering retirement, announced his decision with a message written in Catalan, Spanish, and English, in which he affirms that "it has not been an easy choice, but it has been a well-thought-out one."
"Since my beginnings in Mallorca, passing through Malaga, Barcelona, my time in the NBA with the Oklahoma City Thunder and, of course, my return home to Barça, I have lived a dream. I have also had the privilege of representing the Spanish national team, a fact that I will always carry with pride. Abrines thanked the support of the coaches, teammates and doctors who have accompanied him throughout his career, but he especially addressed his fans: "Even in the toughest moments they have supported me more times than you can imagine. I am leaving with peace of mind, with a full heart and a clear conscience."
"Basketball will continue to be a part of my life, but now it's time to be with my family and enjoy a new phase," added the Mallorcan, who has published a second letter specifically addressed to the Barcelona fans. "As captain, I have tried to do the best I knew how. Nobody is born knowing how to play and this is not an easy or thankless task at times, but I have always given my best for my teammates and for the club, and I hope my teammates feel that way too," he wrote.
Trained at La Salle de Palma and in the youth categories of Unicaja, Abrines arrived at Barça in 2012 from the Andalusian team at the age of 18. In his first spell as a Barça player he won a League, a Copa del Rey and a Super Cup in four seasons, before signing for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the NBA, with whom he played 174 games between 2016 and 2019.
2019-2020 season and enjoyed a second six-year spell in which he won two League titles and two Copa del Reys. During these ten seasons, Abrines has become the player with the sixth most games played for Barça in the Liga Endesa (339), only behind Nacho Solozabal (350), Rodrigo de la Fuente (362), Andres Jimenez (376), Juan Antonio San EpifanioEpi (422) and Juan Carlos Navarro (689).
Likewise, the Mallorcan, a specialist in outside shooting, retires as the third player who has scored the most three-pointers in the championship with the Barça shirt (474, with 41.5% success rate), only surpassed by Epi (2) (1,179, 38.3%).