Kirilenko ready to leave NBA, forgo $63m
In a shocking development rarely seen in pro sports, Andrei Kirilenko said Thursday that he would forgo the remaining amount of his $63m contract to play for another team. Or possibly head back to Europe. “Big money is obviously good, but I am prepared to make less,” Kirilenko told Sports Express “the size of my salary doesn’t mean that much for me. The main thing is to play with a spark. Trust me, I really am prepared to leave NBA. It certainly does not mean that I’m dying to go to Europe. I’m just ready.”
The Utah Jazz forward went on explain his change of heart:
“For the past two years I’ve been going on the court and acting like a robot. When I signed my contract the future looked completely different — I thought I would play, win and get pleasure from it. Unfortunately, this is out of the question now — even in successful games. This is the worst feeling.”
His announcement was on the heels of his Russian blog that mentioned how unhappy Kirilenko was with the Utah Jazz, and particularly Jerry Sloan’s system and motivational techniques.
Related Thread: Kirilenko ‘ready’ to leave NBA, $63M contract, Source: Andrei Kirilenko wants out of Utah, ESPN
