Veteran 76ers forward Elton Brand retiring

PHILADELPHIA (WTXF/AP) - Philadelphia 76ers forward Elton Brand announced he's going to retire at the end of the 2016 preseason.

According to the team, "Over 17 NBA seasons, Brand appeared in 1,058 career games with 868 starts for Chicago, the Los Angeles Clippers, Philadelphia, Dallas and Atlanta. The 6'8" Brand posted career averages of 16 points, nine rebounds, two assists and two blocks per game. His 1,828 blocks rank him 20th all-time in NBA history. He played 34,910 career minutes, which ranks him 67th all-time. Brand was also the recipient of the 2005-06 Joe Dumars Trophy, presented each season to the player who exemplifies the ideals of sportsmanship on the court."

He started as the first overall pick in the 1999 draft by the Chicago Bulls, and was named rookie of the year. He was also a two-time NBA All-Star.

Brand played for the Sixers twice. He originally joined on July 9, 2008, when he signed a free-agent contract. He spent four seasons in Philadelphia before spending 2012-15 with Dallas and Atlanta.

Then, Brand signed back with the Sixers on Jan. 4, 2016 and again on Sept. 7, 2016. As a member of the Sixers, Brand appeared in 263 games, starting 222 of them, and averaged 13 points and seven rebounds in 30.4 minutes per contest.

An active member in the community throughout his NBA career, Brand established the Elton Brand Foundation in the spring of 2000 and donated $235,000 to open a reading and learning center in his hometown of Peekskill, N.Y., in 2004.

Brand is also a founding member and president of Gibraltar Films, a company engaged in film investment, acquisition, production, and distribution of motion pictures.

In their last home preseason game last Saturday, the Sixers lost to the Detroit Pistons, 97-76.

Their final preseason game will be Friday night at 7:30 against the Heat in Miami.

Brand did not actually play in the preseason, but will still collect $1 million from the Sixers.