Air Bull to retire

Quote by ESPN

"Hornets' Bullard admits career likely over
NEW ORLEANS -- Injured Hornets forward Matt Bullard, who hasn't joined the team since it moved to New Orleans this season, thinks his playing career is over because of a bad back.


"My back is so bad. I can barely live a normal life, let alone the life of an NBA athlete,'' Bullard said in an interview posted Friday on the team's Web site. "I got pretty depressed ... not because I wasn't going to be able to play as much as the knowledge I wasn't going to be able to live a normal, pain-free life.''


Bullard said "years of pounding'' on NBA courts have caused a degenerative disc condition so bad he can no longer play golf or even a casual basketball game with his kids.


Bullard, who was placed on the Hornets injured list on Oct. 28, has played 11 seasons in the NBA, nine with Houston, where he still lives. He also played one season for Atlanta.


Bullard appeared in 31 games as a reserve for the Hornets last season, averaging 3.4 points and 1.5 rebounds. He missed the final 35 games with what the team at the time termed as back spams.


Bullard said he has no shock absorption between two discs in his lower back.


"It's like the bones are just hitting each other,'' he said.


Bullard signed a two-year contract with the Hornets before last season and likely will remain on the injured list for the rest of the season, since he remains under contract, Hornets spokesman Harold Kaufman said."