by Marcel Mutoni / @marcel_mutoni
To date, Deron Williams is the only current NBA star to have inked a deal with an overseas team during the lockout. The rest have hinted that if the right opportunity came along, they’d certainly listen to offers (and in some special cases, other sports are even being considered.)
You can now add Kevin Durant to the list of players willing to consider the option of playing in another league during the NBA lockout.
Durant’s agent says he’s happy to hear pitches from international teams for his client’s services.
From SI:
[Kevin Durant’s] agent, Aaron Goodwin, told SI.com that he is exploring overseas options for his most high-profile client.
“If the opportunity presents itself and the lockout persists, he’s going to have to consider it just as other players are considering it,” Goodwin said. “Kevin has shown some interest to know what the situation is and we’ll reach out to the players’ association and make sure that they’re aligned with the guys in case they do take an offer. But I think what you’re going to see happening is a lot of players are going to look at the opportunity if the lockout prolongs that they can go somewhere and play basketball.”
“If they’re not allowed to play in the NBA, they’ve got to look at other opportunities. If you have teams that want you to play and the NBA is willing to sit out a year, why sit out a year?”
It remains to be seen just how many of the L’s marquee names will sign overseas, thus putting more pressure than ever on NBA team owners to quickly end the lockout.
