Tracy McGrady

McGrady was selected as the ninth overall pick by the Toronto Raptors in the 1997 NBA draft.[1] For most of the 1997–98 season, he received little playing time, averaging only 13 minutes per game under head coach Darrell Walker.[9] McGrady has described his rookie year as "hell", feeling lonely in Toronto and sleeping for up to 20 hours a day.[10] Late in the season, Walker resigned, and McGrady began playing more under new coach Butch Carter, who agreed to increase McGrady's minutes on the condition that McGrady would improve his work ethic.[9]

Before the lockout-shortened 1998–99 season, the Raptors drafted McGrady's distant cousin, Vince Carter.[11] The two became inseparable;[12] teammate Dee Brown once said, "They say they're cousins... But Siamese twins is more like it."[13] By the 1999–2000 season, the duo had developed a reputation for their athleticism, giving memorable performances at the All-Star Weekend Slam Dunk Contest.[10] McGrady, now playing significant minutes, was a contender for the Sixth Man of the Year Award before being elevated to Toronto's starting backcourt in late March.[14] Behind McGrady and Carter's play, the Raptors finished the season with a 45–37 record, qualifying for the playoffs for the first time in franchise history.[10][15] McGrady's final averages were 15.4 points, 6.3 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and a career-high 1.9 blocks per game.[1] In the first round of the postseason, the Raptors were swept by the New York Knicks.[15]

Following Toronto's first-round exit, McGrady became a free agent, signing a six-year, $67.5 million contract with the Orlando Magic.[16] He elected to join the Magic in part because he disliked his secondary role playing behind Vince Carter,[17] in part so that he could return home to Florida, and in part to play with their other newly acquired free agent, Grant Hill.[18] Hill would go on to play in only 47 games total throughout his tenure with the team, forcing McGrady into a more significant leadership and scoring role than anticipated.[19]

During the 2000–01 season, McGrady defied the expectations of many,[20] emerging as one of the best players in the NBA, with Milwaukee Bucks General Manager Ernie Grunfeld going so far as to call him "one of the top five talents in the league".[16] McGrady's play earned him his first All-Star Game appearance and, behind averages of 26.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game, he was selected to his first All-NBA Team, being named to the All-NBA Second Team.[1] He was also voted the league's Most Improved Player.[17] With a 43–39 record, the Magic entered the playoffs as the East's seventh seed, drawing a matchup with the Bucks.[21] In Game 3 of the series, McGrady notched 42 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 assists in a performance that Bill Simmons later called McGrady's "superstar audition tape".[20] Orlando was eventually eliminated by Milwaukee in four games.[22]

McGrady with the Magic in 2002

For the 2001–02 season, McGrady averaged 25.6 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game, earning his second All-NBA Team selection, this time to the All-NBA First Team.[1] During that year's All-Star Game, he completed one of the most memorable highlights of his career, throwing the ball off the backboard to himself and completing an alley-oop in traffic.[23] At season's end, the Magic were again ousted in the first round of the playoffs, losing in four games to the Charlotte Hornets.[24]

In 2002–03, McGrady won his first scoring title and, behind averages of 32.1 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game, finished a career-best fourth in NBA Most Valuable Player Award voting.[25] ESPN later ranked his season one of the best ever for a perimeter player.[26] In Game 1 of the playoffs, he scored 43 points to help Orlando take an early series lead against the top-seeded Detroit Pistons.[27] The Magic would go on to take a commanding 3–1 lead, and McGrady made headlines when he prematurely assumed that Orlando were guaranteed to advance to the next round, replying in an interview, "It feels good to get in the second round."[28] Despite holding the series lead, the Magic were eliminated in seven games.[29]

The 2003–04 season was a tumultuous one for McGrady; Magic coach Doc Rivers was fired after a 1–10 start to the year and there were reports of friction between McGrady and Orlando General Manager John Weisbrod.[16][30] Throughout the season, Orlando struggled because of a series of injuries, finishing the year with the worst record in the East despite McGrady winning his second consecutive scoring title.[1][31] Late in the season, McGrady scored a career-high 62 points in a winning effort versus the Washington Wizards.[32] His final averages were 28 points, 6 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game.[1]

On June 29, 2004, McGrady, Juwan Howard, Tyronn Lue, and Reece Gaines were traded to the Houston Rockets as part of a seven-player deal that sent Steve Francis, Cuttino Mobley, and Kelvin Cato to the Magic.[1] In response to the trade, McGrady stated that he was happy with the situation and expressed excitement over the prospect of playing alongside Rocket All-Star center Yao Ming.[33] Shortly after arriving in Houston, McGrady signed a three-year, $63 million contract extension with the team.[10]

The Rockets struggled to begin the 2004–05 season, posting a losing record of 16–17 through their first 33 games.[34] In December, McGrady had one of the most memorable performances of his career, scoring 13 points in the final 35 seconds against the San Antonio Spurs to secure a comeback victory.[35] The sequence included four consecutive three-pointers, one of which was part of a four-point play and the last of which was a game-winner in the final two seconds.[35] After the All-Star break, Houston rebounded from their slow start, finishing the season with 51 wins and the third-best record in the West.[34] McGrady's final averages were 25.7 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 5.7 assists per game.[1] In Game 2 of the first round of the postseason, he had another signature performance, completing a "thunderous" dunk over 7'6" Dallas Mavericks center Shawn Bradley and hitting a game-winner for a 113–111 victory.[36] The series would go to a decisive Game 7, where McGrady came out cold, missing his first seven shots en route to a 40-point loss.[37]

McGrady isolates against Caron Butler in 2006

The 2005–06 season was a disappointing one for the Rockets, as McGrady appeared in only 47 games due to injury.[1] At various points during the year, he missed time due to back spasms, including a moment in January where he had to be carried off the court in a stretcher due to a severe flare up.[38] Despite his health concerns, McGrady was able to play in that year's All-Star Game in front of his home crowd in Houston, exploding for 36 points in just 27 minutes.[20] For the season, he averaged 24.4 points and 6.5 rebounds per game.[1] Due in part to his frequent absences, the Rockets failed to qualify for the playoffs.[39]

Early in the 2006–07 season, McGrady missed seven games, again because of back spasms, eventually deciding to visit a doctor and receive treatment for the injury as he felt that it was affecting his speed and explosiveness.[40] His health issues and the ascension of Yao Ming, who was having a breakout season, resulted in McGrady temporarily becoming the team's second scoring option.[41] His final averages were 24.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 6.5 assists per game.[1] To open the playoffs, the Rockets were matched up the Utah Jazz.[42] By this time, pressure had started to mount on McGrady to lead the team deep into the postseason, to which he responded, "If we don’t get out of the first round, it’s on me!"[43] Houston would eventually lose the series in seven games, and at his postgame press conference following the Game 7 defeat, McGrady, still visibly emotional from the loss, said "I tried, man, I tried."[44]

In 2007–08, the Rockets went on a 22-game winning streak, the then-second longest in NBA history, despite missing Yao Ming during that stretch.[45] During their run, McGrady expressed optimism over the team's roster, admitting, "I haven't had this kind of trust in my teammates before."[10] Houston finished the season as the West's fifth seed, earning them a rematch with the Jazz in the first round.[46] By the time the playoffs arrived, McGrady was nursing shoulder and knee injuries, at times requiring him to receive pain-killing injections and have fluid drained from both his shoulder and knee in order for him to be able to play.[47][48][49] The Jazz again eliminated the Rockets, this time in six games, despite a strong 40-point and 10-rebound performance from McGrady in the decisive Game 6.[50]

Following Houston's loss to Utah, McGrady underwent arthroscopic surgery on both his left shoulder and left knee.[51] Early in the 2008–09 season, he missed 18 games, including a two-week stretch in January as his knee was not fully healed from his offseason surgery.[52] On February 24, he had microfracture surgery in Chicago, forcing him to miss the remainder of the year.[49][53] By then, his averages had declined to 15.6 points and 4.4 rebounds per game.[1] In a surprise turn of events, the Rockets qualified for the playoffs without McGrady and advanced to the second round, pushing the eventual-champion Los Angeles Lakers to seven games.[54]

McGrady was still recovering from surgery to begin the 2009–10 campaign.[55] On December 15, he returned to action but was limited to only seven minutes off the bench.[56] After six games, the Rockets decided to shut him down again so that they could focus on trading him to another team.[55]

McGrady with the Knicks in 2010

On February 18, 2010, McGrady was dealt to the Knicks as part of a three-team trade involving Houston, New York, and Sacramento.[57] Two days later, he made his team debut, scoring 26 points in an overtime loss against the Thunder.[58] He would finish the season with averages of 9.4 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 3.7 assists in 26.1 minutes per game.[1] In 2010–11, he signed with the Detroit Pistons and averaged just 8 points per game, and in 2011–12, he signed with the Atlanta Hawks, averaging a career-low 5.3 points per game.[1]

On October 9, 2012, McGrady signed a one-year deal with the Qingdao DoubleStar Eagles of the Chinese Basketball Association.[59] Qingdao finished the season in last place,[60] with McGrady averaging 25 points, 7.2 rebounds, 5.1 assists, and 1.6 steals per game.[61] Shortly after the conclusion of the CBA campaign, he signed with the San Antonio Spurs in time for him to qualify for their playoff roster.[62] In 2015, McGrady's jersey number 1 was retired by Qingdao.[63] The Spurs eventually advanced to the 2013 NBA Finals, losing in seven games to the Miami Heat, which provided McGrady with the opportunity to play his first career postseason minutes outside of the first round.[64]

On August 26, 2013, McGrady announced his retirement from the NBA on ESPN's First Take.[65][66][67]

• Most points in a game with 62 (March 10, 2004 vs. Washington Wizards)[107]
• Most field goal attempts in a season with 1813 (2002–03)[108]
• Most free throws made in a season with 576 (2002–03)[108]
• Most points in a season with 2407 (2002–03)[108]
• Highest minutes per game in a season with 40.1 (2002–03)[108]
• Highest points per game in a season with 32.1 (2002–03)[108]
• Highest minutes per game in a career with 39.4[109]
• Highest points per game in a career with 28.1[109]