Somebody in China didn’t handle the paperwork properly, and that means Kenyon Martin will be back in the NBA as soon as next week.
Perish the thought of what happens to the poor fellow in China who botched the job.
The top teams vying for his services include the Atlanta Hawks, Los Angeles Clippers, San Antonio Spurs, Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat.
The first overall pick of the 2000 draft, the 11-year veteran spent the past seven seasons with the Denver Nuggets. Last year, he averaged 8.6 points and 6.2 rebounds in 42 games.
From Adrian Wojnarowski of YahooSports: “In a surprising turn of events, the governing body of international basketball – FIBA – has granted free agent Kenyon Martin his letter of clearance to immediately return to the NBA, league sources told Yahoo! Sports. Martin has visited with several teams interested in signing him, including Atlanta on Thursday, and will huddle with agent Andy Miller in New York over the weekend to reach a decision. The Los Angeles Clippers and Miami Heat are leaders for Martin, but the Hawks, Lakers, New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs remain in pursuit of him. New York has faded from contention in recent weeks, sources said, because of more pressing guard needs. For now, the plan is for Martin to travel to the team’s city on Monday to take a physical, sign a contract and work out for perhaps a week before he’s activated. The Clippers can pay Martin the mini midlevel exception for a pro-rated $2.5 million for the season.“The Clippers are probably the best place for [Martin] to showcase himself for his next deal,” one rival front-office executive said. “He’s clearly the third-best [big man] without competition from anyone on their roster.”
Notice how Woj noted the Knicks have more pressing needs.
Columnist Moke Hamilton will have more to say on that tomorrow in his weekly Friday column.