Until about a week ago, Jose Calderon was ready to give it another kick at the can.
But the 14-year veteran NBA point guard got an offer he couldn’t refuse from the National Basketball Players Association, and decided to retire to take on the role as special assistant to the union’s executive director, Michele Roberts.
“I was still talking with a couple of teams about the possibility to join them for the season, but it was going to be a role where I wasn’t going to play a lot. I was going to be that third point guard, trying to mentor some guys, and I’m too competitive,” said the former Toronto Raptor in an appearance on Sportsnet 590 The FAN’s Good Show on Wednesday.
“And I don’t know if getting into December I was going to be working out a lot, helping those guys, maybe losing a lot of games, and I don’t know if I was going to be happy with playing one more year or if that year was going to add a lot to my career just because to play one more.”
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The 38-year-old — who spent 2018-19 with the Detroit Pistons, recording 2.3 points and 2.3 assists in just 12.9 minutes — said he feels “great” and was working out regularly until last week in preparation of one more NBA season, but loved the flexibility offered to him with the position at the NBPA, which allows him to continue his work with his charity, as UNICEF ambassador and his studies with the Harvard Business School’s crossover into business program for athletes.
It also gave him the chance to stay in New York with his family.
“I was living in New York, so I’m just one to stop from there on the subway to get to the office. It’s been great so far, I always like stuff to do and my mind is always working on something else. So it’s been great so far, and that’s what convinced me to to to come here,” said Calderon, who also famously owns a pig farm in his home country of Spain.
“Because it’s something I’ve been preparing for a long time, it’s not something that took me by surprise like, ‘Oh, I don’t have any team now, what am I going to do next? I think I’ve been getting ready for this. (But it) kinda like accelerated the process because of the offer of this job.”
Calderon said he also received a couple of offers to join front offices and coaching staffs around the league, but wanted to be able to dip his toes into different departments across basketball before settling in — an option that is available to him at the NBPA.
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“I didn’t want to commit to something that I didn’t know if I was going to like it, I don’t want to say ‘yes’ to somebody and go there and you start working in the front office and in December say, ‘OK great … I don’t like this … so I wanted to learn first,” he said.
“I think this job gives me the opportunity to be able to talk to people, to see a little bit one year from the outside, to get to basketball operations and see how things work, and after maybe make a decision like ‘OK, I think I like this, I can go now to this team and be there, and work for you guys and be helpful.”
Calderon, who was known for his leadership on and off the court, said for now he’s not particularly drawn to being a coach because of the travel, the long hours and the need to be away from his kids, but he wouldn’t rule anything out.
“I’m not going to close any doors, and I don’t know, maybe I end up doing something that has nothing to do with basketball. That’s why I’m going to be open to meeting with people, that the flexibility (the NBPA) gives me I can, who knows? I’m going to try to learn (and) meet people,” he said.
While retirement from professional basketball may be a new experience to Calderon, it’s been a smooth transition from the court to the stands to this point.
“I don’t miss it so far. I went to see a game the other night with the (New York) Knicks and the (Boston) Celtics, it was opening night. I went with my son. I was sitting there and I actually was happy. I was enjoying it with my son and watching the basketball game without thinking I have to practice tomorrow,” said Calderon.
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