Parker says he played his last game for ASVEL, wants to avoid injury

Now that the NBA lockout is seemingly over, so are the playing days for San Antonio Spurs’ Tony Parker with French club ASVEL-Villeurbanne.

Parker, along with New York Knicks’ Ronny Turiaf, has stated (via Univision.com) he has played his last game with ASVEL (which was today versus Strasbourg) now that the lockout is all but over.

Frenchman Tony Parker confirmed Saturday that Ronny Turiaf and he have played their last game with Asvel Villeurbanne, who won in Strasbourg (80-74) in the eighth round of the League gala, following the announcement of a tentative agreement to end lock-out in the NBA.

“It was our last game Asvel,” said Parker. “We discussed it this afternoon with Ronny. The main goal was to win this game and especially we do not want injuries, which would have been a penalty in our last game. We are glad to finish on a high note,” he added.

This is more great news for Spurs fans especially since Parker did suffer some shoulder pain recently which required injections and caused him to sit out a game for ASVEL.

Now Parker must rest up before training camp.

Parker has been going non-stop on the court since the Spurs were ousted form the playoffs. He played with the French national squad this summer at EuroBasket, and continued to play with ASVEL after.

Any wear-and-tear on the Spurs’ lone true point-guard is a concern. As of right now the team does not have an adequate backup point-guard since George Hill was traded to Indiana. And Cory Joseph isn’t seasoned quite yet to take on such a critical role and Gary Neal might be serviceable but it isn’t his primary playing spot.

And in case you were wondering, Parker finished with 23 points, 8 assists, 5 rebounds, 6-11 from the field in 35 minutes in ASVEL’s win against Strasbourg.