Tyrell Terry Exits the NBA at 22 After Severe Anxiety

Tyrell Terry of the Dallas Mavericks recently announced on social media that he will be retiring from basketball, despite his young age.

The 22-year-old took to Instagram to discuss his retirement from the sport and the reasons behind his short-lived career. According to the athlete himself, the stress of professional athleticism was putting a damper on his negatively impacting his mental health.

“This message is a very difficult one to share and an emotional one to write,” he began in the caption of his post, which was accompanied by a series of photos from his childhood all the way up to his career in the NBA.

Terry proceeded to share the information, “Today I decided to let go of the game that has formed a large part of my identity. Something that has guided my path since I took my first steps.”

The Dallas Mavericks player explained that although basketball brought him countless positive memories and friendships, the sport led him to “[experience] the darkest times of my life. To the point where instead of building me up, it began to destroy me.”

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Tyrell Terry dealt with ‘intrusive’ anxiety that harmed his physical AND mental health

Terry noted that the physical manifestations of his mental health included, “Intrusive thoughts, waking up nauseous, and finding myself struggling to take normal breaths because of the rock that would sit on my chest that seemed to weigh more than I could carry.”

“This is just a brief description of the anxiety this sport has caused me, and while I’m grateful for every door it has opened for me, I can’t continue this fight any longer for something I have fallen out of love with,” the 22-year-old continued. “To most, I will be forever known as a bust, a failure, or a waste of talent. While those may be true when it comes to basketball, it is the biggest failures in life that lead to the greatest success.”

In the midst of his retirement announcement, Terry also shared that he hopes to find other loves beyond basketball and explore an identity beyond the sport.

Terry concluded with the sentiments, “I am eternally grateful to those who have believed in me and apologize to those that I have let down. But I’m headed down a different path now, one that will hopefully lead to happiness and being able to love myself again.”

mattsinclair