Nets sign LaMarcus Aldridge after forward cleared to play
 

[September 04, 2021]  Five months after a heart scare convinced him to retire from basketball, seven-time All-Star forward LaMarcus Aldridge is returning to the Brooklyn Nets on a reported one-year, $2.6 million deal.

Aldridge was diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat that he experienced during a game in April. At the time, he wrote on Twitter that it was "time to put my health and my family first" and leave the NBA.

"I retired in April based on what I believed was the wisest precautionary decision for my personal health at the time," Aldridge said in a statement to ESPN Friday, "but further testing and evaluation by several top physicians has convinced the doctors, myself and the Nets that I'm fully cleared and able to return to the rigors of the NBA. I loved my brief time with Brooklyn and am excited to rejoin the team in pursuit of a championship."

Aldridge's health scare occurred just a few weeks after he reached a contract buyout with his longtime team, the San Antonio Spurs, and signed with the Nets.

He returns to a club that also signed forward Paul Millsap this week and has Kevin Durant and center Blake Griffin coming back as well. The Nets also traded big man DeAndre Jordan to the Detroit Pistons on Friday in exchange for center Jahlil Okafor and power forward Sekou Doumbouya.

In 15 seasons with the Portland Trail Blazers (2006-15), Spurs (2015-21) and Nets, Aldridge averaged 19.4 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game over 1,029 career games (985 starts). He played five games for Brooklyn last spring, all starts, and averaged 12.8 points and 4.8 boards.

--Field Level Media

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