The biggest headline this summer was made in July when Josh Childress decided against fighting for a starting spot in the emerging Atlanta Hawks lineup and instead signed a big-time contract with Greek club Olympiacos.
20 Million Reasons to Come to Europe
Olympiacos has big aspirations of being crowned Euroleague champion in May in Berlin and figured bringing in Childress would be a big help. The 6-foot-8, 210-pound swing man averaged 11.8 points and 4.9 rebounds as the Hawks' main man off the bench last season. So the mega-rich Angelopoulos brothers - owners of Olympiacos - shelled out a three-year deal which is reportedly worth 20 million dollars after taxes.
Jennings Starts High School to Europe Trend
The Childress news actually came a week after another huge bombshell was unloaded by a highly-heralded high school graduate who became the first player to pass up college and head to Europe. Brandon Jennings, of Compton, California, was a star at Oak Hill Academy and considered the nation's top point guard. Hardly an average student, Jennings struggled with the entrance exams though he signed a letter of intent with Arizona. Instead Jennings chose to test the European waters, and Italian Euroleague club Lottomatica Virtus Roma snapped up the promising youngster.
Big Deal For Jennings, Future High School Grads
Jennings signed a three-year deal with Roma but has an out clause after the first two seasons for the NBA Draft. The 19-year-old is expected make 1.2 million dollars this season in salary and endorsements. And Sonny Vaccaro, a former shoe company exec who brokered Jennings's move, said plenty of top high school talents are waiting in the wings if Jennings is successful. "I think we're going to have a revolution, and Brandon Jennings, a kid from Compton, is going to start it," Vaccaro told the International Herald Tribune on October 5.
European Clubs Busy This Summer
But Childress and Jennings were just two of the biggest names to depart the dwindling dollar doldrums and enter the emerging euro zone. European basketball fans will have a chance to watch a number of players who used to be NBA starters. Veteran Earl Boykins signed with Italian club Virtus Bologna. Fellow American Jannero Pargo penned a one-year deal with Russian side Dynamo Moscow. Puerto Rican guard Carlos Arroyo passed up returning to the Orlando Magic to sign with five-time Euroleague champion Maccabi Tel Aviv. And Carlos Delfino of Argentina inked a deal with Russian club BC Khimki.
Europeans Returning Home
At Khimki, Delfino will team with one of a number of Europeans who are returning to the Old Continent. He will actually play alongside his former Toronto Raptors teammate Jorge Garbajosa of Spain. Pargo will race up and down the court with former New Jersey Net Bostjan Nachbar of Slovenia. Nachbar's former Nets teammate Nenad Krstic of Serbia signed with Russian side BC Triumph. Croatian Gordon Giricek inked a deal with Turkish side Fenerbahce, while Slovenian Primoz Brezec will help Jennings with the transition at Roma.
Navarro Joins Former NBA Euro Ilyasova, Magic Draftee Vazquez
Yet another European returning home is Juan Carlos Navarro. The Spanish guard had enough with his one-year NBA adventure and comes back to former club FC Barcelona. NBA fans will recognize two other names on the Barcelona roster. Turkey's Ersan Ilyasova is in his second season back in Europe after leaving the Milwaukee Bucks. And Spaniard Fran Vazquez was the 11th overall pick of the 2005 NBA Draft by the Orlando Magic but enraged Magic fans when he decided to remain in Spain.
