Report: Former UW star Brandon Roy to retire from Blazers

Report: Former UW star Brandon Roy to retire from Blazers
Portland Trail Blazers' Brandon Roy (7) points to the crowd after defeating the Dallas Mavericks 84-82 in Game 4 of their NBA basketball first-round playoff series on Saturday, April 23, 2011, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
PORTLAND, Ore. -- Former UW star and Portland Trail Blazer guard Brandon Roy is planning to announce his retirement from the NBA -- perhaps as soon as Friday, ESPN.com reported.

A source told ESPN The Magazine's Chris Broussard and ESPN.com's Chad Ford that the reason is due to Roy's degenerative knees.

The move likely comes as a shock for the Blazers, who said on Monday they were expecting Roy to be ready for training camp on Friday after he told the team he felt great and wanted to help the team in any way he could.

Sources told ESPN Roy had privately conceded his ongoing knee trouble would have inevitably led to a reduced role, and he didn't want to risk being released and picked up by another team.

Roy has a maximum-salary contract that would keep him with the Trail Blazers until at least the 2013-14 season, but his knees have been a concern.

He has said he lacks cartilage in both knees, meaning there is no cushion between the bones. After arthroscopic surgery last January, Roy came back to play, his minutes were limited off the bench, and he finished with an average of 12.2 points, a career low, in 47 games.

-- See full ESPN.com story

The Associated Press contributed to this report