RIO DE JANEIRO -- Tony Parker confirmed after Frances lopsided defeat to Spain in Wednesdays Olympic quarterfinals that he has indeed played his final game for his national team.Parker said after Frances 92-67 loss to its longtime Spanish rivals that he has promised San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich and team president R.C. Buford he will halt his international career at age 34 -- because of the toll it has taken on him physically -- and focus on finishing his NBA career strongly.And Im not gonna change my mind about that, Parker said after scoring 14 points in his finale.Wednesdays exit was a rough one for the French after they had played so well Sunday in a narrow three-point defeat to the United States, which Parker skipped to rest a bruised toe he had suffered earlier in the tournament.France and Spain have met in top-level international competition for each of the past six summers. This comprehensive performance improved the Pau Gasol-led Spaniards record to 4-2 in those matchups and sent them into Fridays semifinals against the United States as the hottest team in Olympic mens basketball.I felt like Spain was the Spurs, Parker said of the oppositions high level on Wednesday, and I was on the other side.Reflecting on an emotional summer that, in addition to the end of his own international career, saw Tim Duncan announce his retirement from the Spurs, Parker said: The conversation with Timmy, it was weird when he told me he was not going to play. I knew that was going to come one day, with the Big Three without him, but its always tough when it finally happens.Ive been very blessed -- thats all I can say. Those 15 years, all the championships, all the records, everything that we accomplished, its just stuff when I retire I can cherish and show my kids everything that we won with the Spurs.Im just happy its not both at the same time, Parker continued, referring to Argentina star Manu Ginobilis decision to play on with the Spurs despite Duncans retirement.Im happy that Manu got one more year, so its not everybody at the same time. That day will come too, and then my day will come. Its just life. I think theres a lot of great guys -- it was a great 10 years with Kobe and Shaq and all the rivalries and stuff like that -- but everything comes to an end.France coach Vincent Collet called Parker the best French player forever and said it was very frustrating to walk off the court with Parker knowing he has a last game like that.We got four medals in the last five years with the national team, and he was a big part of it, Collet said. Hes been the leader that we needed for a long time.As Parker said, Spain was just great tonight, they made every spot. We made a decision to stop Pau, and?[Nikola] Mirotic?goes off. So ... thats basketball.At the same time, I dont want to throw away everything that weve done in the last 16 years [and] in the last eight, nine years with Coach Collet. Im very proud of what we did as a national team, and its the best results in the history of French basketball.The only consolation for Parker, on this night, is knowing that hell soon be able to call his good friend Gasol a teammate when they join forces for the first time next season after Gasols decision to sign in free agency with San Antonio. They embraced at midcourt after Spains emphatic win.Ive been playing against him since Im like 14 years old, Parker said. Great friend and off the court, we go to dinner, stuff like that, double dates and everything. I was so happy that he decided to come play with San Antonio. Hes going to be a great guy to have around.For me, it makes my job easy, with Pau and?LaMarcus [Aldridge], its going to be great and, like I said earlier, Spain?had a great generation. If it was not for Spain, I would have another 10 medals, 15 medals, but life is like that. I beat Pau a lot in the NBA, so it balances out.Saad Yousuf of ESPN Radio in Dallas (103.3 FM) contributed to this report. Vladimir Tarasenko Jersey . On Mar. 16, coming off a "fight of the year" performance at UFC 154 the previous November, St-Pierre faced Nick Diaz at UFC 158 in what would be his eighth defence of the welterweight title. Using his superior athleticism, St-Pierre cruised to a five round, unanimous decision victory setting up a much-anticipated title defence against number one contender Johny Hendricks. Pavol Demitra Jersey .Y. -- Leading 3-0 with only 11:25 left, the Colorado Avalanche committed a seemingly meaningless penalty to give the New York Islanders a power play. http://www.cheapbluesjerseys.info/authentic-brett-hull-blues-jersey/ . "Jeff is a hard worker who was an important special-teams contributor for us last season," said Stamps GM John Hufnagel. Al Macinnis Jersey . 1 position. The Mustangs (6-0), who beat Queens 50-31 last weekend, earned 17 first-place votes and 287 points in voting by the Football Reporters of Canada. Western was last ranked first in the country in October 2011. Wayne Gretzky Jersey . The 43-year-old closer, in his 19th and final big league season, has said hed like to play the outfield. Yankees manager Joe Girardi says hes thinking about allowing Rivera to do it this weekend, when the Yankees finish their season with a three-game series at the Houston Astros."Now Im the other man. No ones rooting for me." - Chris Murphy Under any circumstances, it would have been difficult to justify trading Wayne Gretzky in hockey terms. On Wednesday, SportsCentre looked at the man tasked with being the centrepiece of Edmontons return for trading its greatest asset. "The Kid In The Shadow: The Story of Jimmy Carson" aired on SportsCentre as part of the continuing look at the 25th anniversary of the trade that sent Wayne Gretzky to the Los Angeles Kings. "Youre renegotiating a contract. You just bought a house," remembered Carson of that fateful day. "You outfitted it and, oh, by the way, you were just involved in the biggest trade in the history of sports. Now what?" Carson came to Edmonton with great pedigree as one of the five pieces the Oilers obtained in the trade. Arriving hot on the heels of a 55-goal season, Carson - just 20 years old - was supposed to be a building block to keep the on-ice juggernaut that had already won four Stanley Cups rolling. In fact, he still holds the NHL record to this day for most career goals scored before the age of 20 with a total of 92. "He was a phenom," said then Kings owner Bruce McNall. "He had the respect of everybody because he could score." Carson, however, would not last long in Edmonton. "I think his personality was much different than Waynes, so I dont think he was [as] accepted as a person,"; said Oilers stalwart Kevin Lowe.dddddddddddd His numbers were excellent - posting 49 goals for the Oilers in 1988-89 - but the young American was unable to withstand the pressure of replacing Gretzky. He would be dealt by the Oilers just four games into the 1989-90 season for a package that included soon-to-be Stanley Cup Final hero Petr Klima. "He called me up and said that he was going home," recalled then Oilers coach John Muckler of the morning Carson requested a trade. "He said I just cant walk back into that dressing room again." TSN Drive host Dave Naylor looked at Carsons struggles, triumphs, and how he learned to chart his own course while being part of someone elses history. TSN.ca also features a host of exclusive content all week long at www.tsn.ca/tradeat25. Visit the site now for videos from 1988, including Gretzkys famous farewell news conference as well as vintage SportsCentre clips from the day the trade broke, as well as clips from the previous "Trade at 25" features that have aired on SportsCentre earlier this week. TSN.ca will also be posting photo galleries all week long examining how "The Trade" has had a ripple effect through the NHL that is still being felt today. Interact with TSN on various social media platforms as well - including Twitter, Facebook and Instagram - for vintage Gretzky photos, trivia questions and links to exclusive TSN.ca content all week long. ' ' '