This NBA Star Gave up Millions and Shockingly Retired From the League to Focus on his ‘Faith’

Hollywood might be a Godless town filled with an unprecedented amount of atheists but the rest of the entertainment industry isn’t that way.

From professional athletes to musicians; there are quite a few Christians out there even if they’re afraid to speak on it at a frequent level publicly because maybe their fans might be turned off by it. But then there are others who are willing to give up their entire career for it.

And this NBA star gave up millions and shockingly retired from the league in order to focus on his “faith.”

Tim Tebow might be the most prominent prototypical Christian athlete of his generation. Although Tebow is still currently in the minor leagues in baseball, his Christian faith has inspired millions of his fans and he’s even written several books on the matter.

There are others you might be surprised to learn are Christian.

Despite his public feud with President Donald Trump, Steph Curry is a renowned Christian and has gone to noble levels to show it.

Curry is one of the main Executive Producers – in this particular case “Executive Producer” means he’s one of the main financiers – on the 2019 Christian film “Breakthrough,” starring Topher Grace and Josh Lucas.

Based on the novel, “Breakthrough” tells the story of a 14-year-old boy who drowns in a lake and a faithful mother who prays for him to come back to life at the brink of death.

But would Curry give up his $38 million per year salary in order to dedicate his entire life to his faith?

That’s exactly what Indiana Pacers guard Darren Collison did.

Collison announced over the weekend, before free agency began on June 30^th, that he was going to retire from the NBA so he can dedicate more of his time to work with the Jehovah’s Witnesses, who help the less fortunate.

In a letter addressed to ESPN, Collison wrote: “While I still love basketball, I know there is something more important, which is my family and my faith. I am one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, and my faith means everything to me. I receive so much joy from volunteering to help others and participate in a worldwide ministry. The joy I feel is unmatched. With that being said, I have decided to retire from the NBA.”

The noblest part of making this career decision is that he was about to sign a deal that would earn him at least $12 million per year and likely at a 3 to 4 year deal.

Instead he likely hung up his basketball shoes forever because he’s 31-years-old and the NBA’s median age of retirement amongst players is between 34-35 years-old.

ESPN reported, “Collison averaged 12.5 points and 5.0 assists in 708 games through 10 seasons. The 2010 All-NBA rookie selection played for the New Orleans Hornets, Dallas Mavericks, LA Clippers, Sacramento Kings and Indiana Pacers. He is one of 26 players in NBA history to average at least 10 points and 3.5 assists per game in each of his first ten seasons.”

The Indiana Pacers posted a quote from Collison too saying, “I receive so much joy from volunteering to help others and participate in a worldwide ministry. The joy I feel is unmatched… to all of you, I would like to say thank you for the countless years of support. I thank you for respecting my decision.”