Tony Parker

At 42 years old, Tony Parker has this physical status:

Professional career

Parker played in the French amateur leagues for two seasons before becoming a professional and signed with Paris Basket Racing in 1999. Parker was invited to the Nike Hoop Summit in Indianapolis in the summer of 2000. Parker had 20 points, seven assists, four rebounds, and two steals in a match between the American and European All-Stars. His popularity sparked a recruiting battle at several colleges, including UCLA and Georgia Tech. Parker left the NCAA to remain in France, and remained in France for the next year; he played in the French League for the next year before starting the 2001 NBA draft.

Parker was invited to the San Antonio Spurs' summer camp before the 2001 NBA draft. Coach Gregg Popovich brought him to action against Spurs scout and ex-NBA player Lance Blanks. Blanks was overwhelmed by the brutal and physical defense of his man, and Popovich was able to dismiss him after just ten minutes. Popovich decided to invite Parker for a second time after seeing a "best of" mix tape of Parker's best performances. Parker gave a better impression against Blanks this time; later, the Frenchman referred to Blanks as a "one-man wrecking team." However, while Popovich decided that Parker was worth the money, the Spurs also had to pray that other teams did not draft Parker during the draft. Parker's name was barely included in the pre-draft predictions, and the point guard was drafted 28th overall by the Spurs on draft day.

Parker, who was originally playing backup to Antonio Daniels, became a starter and made 77 regular-season appearances in his rookie season, scoring 9.2 points, 4.3 assists, and 2.6 rebounds in 29.4 minutes per game. He made his third French player to play in an NBA game on November 30th, 2001, after Tariq Abdul-Wahad and Jérôme Moso. The rookie dominated San Antonio in assists and robbery by the end of the season, and he was named to the All-Rookie First Team for 2001-02, becoming the first foreign-born guard to be honoured.

Parker appeared in all 82 regular-season games as San Antonio's starting point guard on a team that had been mostly rebuilt from previous years. He improved his regular season stats, posting 15.5 points per game (ppg), 5.3 assists per game (apg), and 2.6 rebounds per game (rpg). Parker's contribution as the team's playmaker was evident in his role as the team's playmaker, who also contributed in assists on 49 occasions. Parker also competed in the inaugural Skills Challenge during the 2003 NBA All-Star Weekend for the Sophomores. The Spurs, coached by Tim Duncan, defeated the New Jersey Nets 4–2 in the finals, earning Parker his first NBA championship ring. Despite winning, Parker suffered with inconsistent play throughout the playoffs, and he was often benched in favour of more experienced guards Steve Kerr and Speedy Claxton late in the games.

Despite winning a championship with the Spurs, rumors lingered over Parker's future. Jason Kidd of the New Jersey Nets had attempted and failed to sign Parker, but Parker told coach Popovich that he wanted to be San Antonio's starting point guard. Parker had a fruitful season, with 14.7 ppg, 5.5 apg, and 3.2 rpg. In the 2004 NBA Playoffs, the Spurs were defeated by the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference semi-finals, and they were denied back-to-back titles.

Parker's regular season results improved, with 16.6 ppg, 6.1 apg, and a career-best 3.7 rpg. He was also ranked 13th in the league in total assists, and third in third place in terms of field goal percentages. Parker was instrumental in the Spurs' victories over the Denver Nuggets, Seattle SuperSonics, and Phoenix Suns. In the Finals series against the Detroit Pistons, Parker falterded. When Parker was unable to function as well as he did in the regular season, Spurs teammates Manu Ginóbili and Brent Barry often took over playmaking duties. Nonetheless, the Spurs captured their third-ever NBA title by defeating the defending champions 4–3 in the 2005 NBA Finals.

Parker was selected for the first time in his career as a member of the Atlanta-Twote, with 18.9 ppg and an impressive.548 field goal percentage. Parker's scoring average was even higher than Duncan's, and his play helped the Spurs to a 63–19 loss-loss record and qualification for the 2006 NBA Playoffs. However, the top-seeded Spurs were unable to win back-to-back titles after being disqualified in the second round by the Dallas Mavericks.

Parker was selected to play in the 2007 NBA All-Star Game as a reserve guard in the first half of the 2006–07 season on February 14, 2007. The Spurs qualified for the 2007 NBA Playoffs and finished second in the Southwest Division with Parker as the starting point guard in the 2006–07 season. The Spurs were defeated by two-time and reigning NBA MVP Steve Nash in the Western Conference Semifinals. The Spurs beat the Utah Jazz 4–1 to win the Western Conference Finals after eliminating the Suns. Parker and the Spurs advanced to the Cleveland Cavaliers, beating them 4–0 in the 2007 NBA Finals. Parker consistently outplayed his Cavaliers colleagues Daniel Gibson and All-Defensive Team member Larry Hughes, resulting in a series of 24.5 points and a 57.1% field goal percentage from three-point range in this series. He was named the 2007 NBA Finals MVP for his appearances, becoming the first European-born player to be honoured.

Parker's averages in the 2007-08 regular season were similar to those in previous two seasons for points and rebounds, with only marginally increasing his assists per game average. In the first round of the 2008 NBA Playoffs, the Spurs finished third in the Western Conference and met the Phoenix Suns in the first round. San Antonio defeated Phoenix for the third time in four years; Parker had a spectacular first-round run, with nearly 30 points and 7 assists per game. The Spurs lost the first two road games against Chris Paul's New Orleans Hornets in the first round before rallying with a big win in the third round. Parker had a double-double with 31 points and 11 assists in that game. The Spurs won the conference Finals after seven games to overthrowrown the Hornets, but the Spurs were unable to beat the Los Angeles Lakers in the Conference Finals, and the Spurs were defeated once more in the NBA Championships.

San Antonio got off to a rocky start in their 2008–09 NBA season, losing the first three games. Parker had a career-high 55 points in his fourth game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, leading the Spurs to their first victory of the season. The Spurs recovered quickly enough and finished second in the Conference's All-Star break. Parker was selected as a reserve for the 2009 All-Star game, with a career-high in points per game. For the most part, the Spurs were without a dependable shooting guard Ginóbili, and more responsibility fell on Parker's shoulders. Parker helped the team win by 54-28 and third seed in the playoffs, beating George Gervin's franchise record for points in a half of 31. However, the Spurs eventually fell 4–1, losing out of the playoffs for the first time since 2000. Parker's 28.6 points and 4.2 rebounds per game set new career-best averages of 22.4 points and 3.7 rebounds. He was accepted into the All-NBA Third Team on May 13, 2009.

Richard Jefferson, Theo Ratliff, Antonio McDyess, DeJuan Blair, and Keith Bogans were among the Spurs' new support cast members in the 2009–10 season. Parker sustained his hand injury early in the season and missed 26 games. The Spurs qualified for the playoffs as the seventh seed and beat Dallas 4–2 in the first round, but lost 4–0 to Phoenix in the next round.

The Spurs posted a 12-game winning streak in 2010, going 13–2 after 15 games. The Spurs were 29–4 after 33 games, one of the top ten best starts in NBA history, and they led the league at 35–6 halfway through the season. Parker and the Spurs were the first seed in the West for the 2011 NBA playoffs, and second in the league (to Chicago). Despite finishing with a 61-21 record, the Spurs could not prevent being disqualified in the first round, 4–2, by the eighth-seeded Memphis Grizzlies.

Parker signed with ASVEL, the French basketball team in which he holds a minority interest during the 2011 NBA lockout. Parker's salary was about $2,000 per month. "I'll be playing practically for free," he said. He also bought his own insurance, which was estimated to cost $250,000 for three months.

Parker was a member of the Los Angeles Spurs for the second straight season during the 2011–12 NBA season; the Spurs tied the Chicago Bulls for the best overall record in the league. Parker defeated Oklahoma City Thunder on February 4, 2012, becoming the franchise's all-time assistant coach, surpassing Avery Johnson by 42 points. Despite the lockout (a new NBA record), the Spurs won their 13th straight 50 games this season, and Parker earned his fourth All-Star nod. He came in fifth place in MVP award voting, receiving four first-place votes. Boris Diaw, Parker's longtime friend who had requested waivers from the Charlotte Bobcats, was signed late in the season. Parker had 20.1 points and 6.8 assists as the Spurs cruised through the first two rounds, defeating the Utah Jazz and the Los Angeles Clippers in the 2012 NBA Playoffs. The Spurs faced the young Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Finals. The Spurs lost four straight games after winning Game 1 and Game 2, 101–98, 120–111, respectively, and taking a 2–0 series lead, putting the season 4–2.

The Spurs defeated the Thunder in their second game of the 2012–13 season, with Parker winning a match for the Spurs. Parker had his first three-double appearance against the Houston Rockets in overtime on December 10, 2012, with 27 points, 12 rebounds, and 12 assists. He was the fourth NBA player to play 800 games or more into their career before their first triple-double, joining Karl Malone (860), Patrick Ewing (834), and Cedric Maxwell (824). Parker was named Western Conference Player of the Month for the month of January 2013, leading the Spurs to a 12–3 record and the best record in the NBA. While shooting 56.3 percent from the field, he averaged 21.9 points per game and 7.9 assists per game last month. He was the first Spurs player to be honoured since Tim Duncan in April 2002. Parker scored a career-high 18 assists to go for 15 points in the Spurs' Western Conference finals game 2 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on May 21, 2013.

Parker took the game by 82–88 over San Antonio's 92–88 victory in game one of the 2013 NBA Finals against the defending champion Miami Heat. In seven games, the Spurs eventually lost the series.

Parker, along with Manu Ginóbili and Tim Duncan, tied for the most games in playoffs by a trio of players playing together in May 2014; the LA Lakers trio of Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Michael Cooper won with 110 victories. The Spurs defeated the Thunder in six games and advanced to the NBA Finals for the second year in a row. San Antonio will face the Miami Heat once more in five games and will crown the 2014 NBA Finals. Parker earned his fourth championship and his fifth title to the Spurs thanks to his victory.

Parker agreed to a three-year, $43.3 million contract extension with the Spurs on August 1, 2014. The Spurs won with a 55–27 record in the first round of the playoffs, but they lost in seven games to the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round. Parker suffered in the playoffs due to injuries and averaged 10.9 points per game on 36 percent shooting.

Parker helped the Spurs win a franchise-best 67 games while still averageing 11.9 points per game in the 2015–16 season. The Spurs dominated the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round of the 2016 playoffs, but the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Spurs in the second round in six games.

Parker longtime colleague Tim Duncan has been forced to leave in the 2016-17 season. The Spurs recorded back-to-back 60-win seasons for the first time in franchise history as they entered back-to-back 60-win seasons. Parker played 63 games and averaged 10.1 points per game. The Spurs were matched against the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round of the 2017 playoffs. San Antonio defeated Memphis 4–2, with Parker scoring 16.3 points per game in the series. Parker left the game with a punctured left quadriceps tendon that ended his season after scoring 18 points in Game 2 of the second round, a win over the Houston Rockets. San Antonio's first postseason game without Parker since 2001, which tied for a NBA record of 221 straight playoff appearances for Parker. Parker's injury required surgery, and some people were concerned that if he came back at all.

Parker had six points and four assists in 14 minutes in his first appearance since breaking his quadriceps tendon. Parker had 10 points and five assists in his second game back on Friday, on November 29th. Parker played 55 games and averaged a career-low 7.7 points a game in his last season with the Spurs. In the first round, the Spurs made it to the playoffs and lost in 5 games to the Golden State Warriors.

Parker's No. 11 was retired by the Spurs on November 11, 2019. 9 jersey.

Parker signed a two-year deal with the Charlotte Hornets on July 23, 2018. On Saturday, he made his Hornets debut as a player, shooting 8/8, 7 assists, and 3 rebounds while being off the bench for 19 minutes in a 113–112 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.

Parker resigned from basketball on June 10, 2019. He finished his career with fifth in career playoff assists (1,143) and ninth in career playoff scoring (4,045).

National team career

Parker appeared for France's Junior National Teams at the 1997 FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship, the 1998 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship and the 2000 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship, as well as the 2002 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship. When France won the gold medal in 2000, he was named the Most Valuable Player of the European Under-18 Championship, with an average of 14.4 points and 2.5 assists per game. At the 2002 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship, Parker averaged 25.8 points, 6.8 assists, and 6.8 steals per game. Parker has competed in the FIBA EuroBaskets for the 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, and 2013 editions for the French senior national team.

France secured the bronze medal in the 2005 FIBA EuroBasket by defeating the Spanish national team 98-68 in the bronze medal game. Parker, the captain of France's national team since 2003, was supposed to lead France at the 2006 FIBA World Championship, but he was unable to participate after breaking his finger in the jersey of a Brazilian national team player, according to France's final warm-up for the tournament. Parker averaged 20.1 points per game and 2.8 assists per game in nine tournament games, but the Russian national team beat France in the quarterfinals. He recovered completely from some injuries he sustained during the 2009–10 NBA season after winning the 2010 FIBA World Championships. Parker returned to the team in 2011, and France exited the 2011 EuroBasket finals after losing to Spain to Spain. Parker was also on the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. The 2013 FIBA EuroBasket tournament featured Parker and the French national team.

Parker scored his 1,032nd career game against Poland in EuroBasket 2015, beating Nikos Galis as the tournament's all-time leading scorer. Pau Gasol later shattered the record.

Parker declared his intention to withdraw from international competition, but not the NBA, after the 2016 Summer Olympics. After France lost in the quarter-finals in Rio de Janeiro, he reiterated that determination.

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