On August 7, 2024, just days before his 27th birthday, Kyle Guy stunned the basketball world by announcing his retirement from professional basketball. There were no major injury concerns and certainly no issues with his level of play that could explain such a decision. Quite the opposite, in fact. In what proved to be his penultimate professional game, the opening contest of the ACB League playoffs, Guy erupted for 34 points against Barça for Lenovo Tenerife, delivering the kind of elite perimeter scoring display that had established him as one of Europe’s deadliest shooters.
At the time, Guy had no shortage of suitors across Europe. Clubs continued to inquire about his availability, but the Indiana native opted for a path rarely taken at that stage of a player’s career. He walked away from the game and returned to the University of Virginia, where he had cemented his legacy by leading the Cavaliers to the 2019 NCAA championship and earning Final Four Most Outstanding Player honors. His unforgettable three free throws against Auburn in the national semifinal and his 24-point performance in the title game against Texas Tech remain among the defining moments in Virginia basketball history.
Only five years later, despite having established himself as one of Europe’s premier marksmen —averaging 14.7 points while shooting 37.7% from beyond the arc with Tenerife, after posting 12.8 points and 37% from three during the previous season with Joventut following a less successful spell at Panathinaikos— Guy chose to begin a coaching career as an assistant and player development mentor. The announcement came as a genuine surprise throughout the basketball community.
His coaching stint in Charlottesville, however, got off to a turbulent start. Longtime Virginia head coach Tony Bennett unexpectedly stepped down, citing his concerns over the rapidly changing NCAA landscape shaped by NIL regulations. Assistant Ron Sanchez took over on an interim basis, but the Cavaliers endured a disappointing campaign and failed to reach the NCAA Tournament, a competition they had become accustomed to under Bennett.
That difficult season ultimately set the stage for yet another twist. Guy reversed course and returned to professional basketball in 2025-26, joining the Noblesville Boom, the Indiana Pacers’ NBA G League affiliate. Any doubts about his ability to regain his form quickly disappeared as he averaged 23 points per game while knocking down 38.9% of his three-point attempts. Within weeks, he was back on the international radar, earning a move to the Shanxi Loongs in China at the beginning of 2026. Earlier that season, he had also received a call-up to the USA Basketball national team for the FIBA World Cup 2027 qualifying window.
Guy, who has also remained active on the American 3×3 circuit, now returns to top-level European basketball after signing a two-year deal with his former club, now competing as La Laguna Tenerife. He rejoins the Canary Islands during a period of transition following the departure of long-time head coach Txus Vidorreta to Unicaja Málaga. The American guard, however, will once again share the floor with the ageless Marcelinho Huertas, whose trademark playmaking should continue to generate open looks from the corners, but this time within the offensive schemes designed by another former elite shooter, new head coach Jaka Lakovic.
Kyle Guy’s professional journey has been anything but conventional. Few players have stepped away from the game at their peak, embarked on a coaching career, and then returned to perform at such a high level. That unusual path has only heightened the anticipation surrounding his return to the Liga Endesa, where he has already emerged as one of the headline signings of the summer.
