The Chicago Bulls have been in the market for a talented shooting guard to pair with Derrick Rose, but if you secretly had been holding out hope Brandon Roy would be cut using the amnesty provision and then come to the Bulls for a shot at a championship, you can officially cross him off the list now. Roy will formally announce his decision to seek a medical retirement from the Portland Trail Blazers, according to a report by ESPN's Chris Broussard. Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports has confirmed this report as well, via Twitter:
@WojYahooNBA
Adrian WojnarowskiPortland's Brandon Roy has been diagnosed with a "career-ending (knee) injury," league source confirms to Y! Sports. "He's done."
12 minutes ago via web · powered by @socialditto
Roy was severely limited last season for the Trail Blazers, and the compressed schedule for the 2011-12 season would certainly have been an even bigger stress on a man who has had three knee surgeries in the past 18 months. Under the medical retirement exception, the Blazers can remove the $64 million owed to Roy over the next four season from their cap figure starting next season, as long as Roy doesn't return play before that time and a league-appointed doctor certifies that the he is no longer able to play for medical reasons.
For updates on free agent moves, stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago. For in-depth coverage of the Bulls, visit Blog a Bull. For up-to-the-minute coverage of all of the key personnel moves, check out the SB Nation NBA free agency StorySteam.
For more on Roy's decision and the impact on the Blazers, visit Blazer's Edge.