The Philadelphia Sixers have reportedly suspended veteran forward Andrei Kirilenko, who has refused to show up for work after the Brooklyn Nets dealt him to Philly.
The soon-to-be 34-year old’s NBA future is very much up in the air:
Philadelphia has suspended Andrei Kirilenko for failing to report to the team, league sources tell Yahoo Sports. Suspension is without pay.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) January 9, 2015
The NBA was made aware of the Kirilenko suspension earlier this week, league sources tell Yahoo Sports.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) January 9, 2015
The Philly Inquirer reports that Sixers GM Sam Hinkie did not follow through on a handshake agreement to sever ties with AK-47, who wants nothing to do with the tanking squad:
According to two sources with inside knowledge of the negotiations, the Sixers had agreed to release veteran forward Andrei Kirilenko after the trade was consummated, but did not follow through on that handshake deal. Kirilenko, who played only seven games with the Nets this season, remains on the Sixers roster but has refused to join the team despite a request to do so.
“He might have an IQ of 150, but [Hinkie] doesn’t seem to realize you have to deal with these people over and over,” one league source said.
Could Hinkie have misinterpreted or misunderstood the alleged agreement with the Nets, who wanted to satisfy the desire of Kirilenko – a favorite of Russian team owner Mikhail Prokhorov – to become a free agent? […] “No,” said another source. “I think he started thinking he can just hold onto him and use him at the trade deadline in a package to get something.”
