Portland, OR – The Portland Trail Blazers have waived guard Brandon Roy and designated him as the team's amnesty player.
Roy announced last week that he's retiring because of knee problems. Roy's knees have undergone six surgeries and have no cartilage left.
"Brandon's announcement that he is leaving the game ultimately shifted our decision to amnesty," said Trail Blazers acting general manager Chad Buchanan in a statement Thursday. "We're given the immediate option to obtain additional salary cap flexibility as we will no longer be in the luxury tax -- something that is critical to improving our team and helping us recover from the loss of a player of Brandon's caliber."
Despite all the injuries, Roy established himself as one of the league's best. He was named Rookie of the Year in 2007 despite playing in only 57 games, averaging 16.8 points, 4.4 rebounds and 4.0 assists.
He averaged 22.6 points in 2008-09 and 21.5 the following season, and was named an All-Star three times. Roy also earned All-NBA Second Team honors in 2008-09, becoming the first Trail Blazer to garner All-NBA honors since Clyde Drexler did so in 1991-92.
During his career, Roy has averaged 19 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.7 assists, while shooting 46 percent. In 15 career playoff appearances (seven starts), Roy averaged 16.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.6 assists.
"When faced with this decision, it made the most sense for us to amnesty his contract," said Trail Blazers president Larry Miller. "We have a solid core group of players that we want to continue to build around. We owe it to our fans to put the best possible product on the court and this puts us in a better position to do that sooner rather than later. We once again want to thank Brandon for his many contributions as a Trail Blazer and wish him the best in his life after basketball."
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