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Professional athletes understand that there is always a possibility of being traded to another team, but very few individuals have experienced the ordeal that former NBA player Luke Ridnour went through before ultimately deciding to end his career.
For those who may not be familiar with Ridnour, he gained recognition during his time at the University of Oregon before entering the NBA as the 14th overall pick in the 2003 draft by the Seattle SuperSonics.
Although the 6’2″ guard never became a dominant force in the league, he still managed to earn over $44 million in contract earnings throughout his 12-season career, playing for a total of five different teams and participating in 830 games. He averaged 9.3 points, 4.5 assists, and one steal per game. Ridnour’s final game was as a member of the Magic in 2015, but he is perhaps most remembered for the events that unfolded during the subsequent offseason.
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The NBA Draft typically sparks a flurry of trade activity, and on June 24, 2015, Ridnour found himself caught up in this frenzy. The Magic traded him to the Grizzlies in exchange for the draft rights to Latvian forward Jānis Timma, who had previously chosen to remain in Europe rather than sign with an NBA team after being selected by Memphis in 2013.
The following day, the Grizzlies set their sights on Matt Barnes and were able to acquire him by trading Ridnour to the Hornets. However, Ridnour’s time with Charlotte was short-lived as he, along with a second-round pick, was promptly traded to the Thunder in exchange for Jeremy Lamb on the same day.
But the trade saga did not end there!
On June 30th, Oklahoma City sent Ridnour, along with some cash, to the Raptors in exchange for the draft rights to Croatian center Tomislav Zubčić, who had been selected by Toronto in 2012 but had spent most of his time playing for the Thunder’s G League team before returning to Europe.
This marked the fourth and final trade that Ridnour was involved in within a span of less than a week. Unfortunately, he found himself without a team when the Raptors waived him just nine days later. After considering his options, Ridnour made the decision to take a one-year break, which ultimately led to his permanent retirement in the summer of 2016.
According to the Source brobible.com