Dion Waiters Threatens To Retire, Which May Not Be Such A Terrible Idea

Veteran shooting guard Dion Waiters is an unrestricted free agent, able to sign anywhere he wishes. Of course, the NBA season has started, and as far as we can tell, no one is interested. But that may not be the reason Waiters calls it a career.

“They think I’m playing,” Waiters said on Instagram Live, via Larry Brown Sports. “I been contemplating it though, about retiring. It’s the politics for me. Game-wise, we know what’s up. I just can’t do the politics, man. We ain’t going over that water. I’ll retire before that.”

Waiters signed with the Los Angeles Lakers as a free agent in February. He rode the franchise to his first championship ring. Lakers coach Frank Vogel seemed to give Waiters every opportunity during the NBA restart in late July -- but Waiters must not have made the most of it because he quickly fell out of the rotation.

Waiters, 29, is represented by Rich Paul, the power broker of an agent who has multiple Lakers clients, including LeBron James and Anthony Davis. So if Paul can't find Waiters a gig, maybe Waiters should indeed walk away. And maybe it has nothing to do with the "politics" Waiters appears to be citing.

Waiters has some talent and can fill it up, scoring bushels of baskets in a matter of moments when he's locked in. But playing professionally also requires some professionalism and consistency. Players have to show up and accept their role. That hasn't always been the case with Waiters, and now, it may be time for him to move on to the next chapter.