With the Nets right on the verge of breaking into the Eastern Conference playoff field for the first time in months, the career fate of a former Net who was rumored to possibly rejoin the team has gotten a little swept under the rug.
Andray Blatche–who spent the 2012-13 and 2013-14 seasons in Brooklyn with the Nets–has signed a long-term deal with the Xinjiang Flying Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association, closing the door on his return to the NBA for at least three seasons. Some of his teammates with the Flying Tigers are former Nets draft pick Jordan Crawford and Brooklyn native Sebastian Telfair. Nets great and fellow Brooklyn boy, and Telfair’s cousin, Stephon Marbury also plays in the league, as a member of the Beijing Ducks.
Blatche’s deal is reportedly for three years and $7.5 million, which is considered the largest contract in CBA history. He averaged over 30 points and 14 rebounds in his debut season overseas and clearly is beloved by both his team and the fans. Brooklyn, for which Blatche averaged over 10 points and five rebounds in 155 games over the past two seasons, was among a few teams interested in bringing him back to the States in early February when his team didn’t reach the CBA Playoffs.
The Grizzlies and Heat were also rumored to be in on Blatche, but neither them nor the Nets decided to make a move, and now it looks like he may never return to the NBA. In a place like China, with his size, he can dominate and become a star, which it appears as if he has already become. There’s no doubt the Nets could use his scoring off the bench, as could other teams, but his ongoing off-court issues and tough personality appear to have relegated him out of the US. Maybe, in three years, he’ll be back. Yet, for now, we can do no more than follow his jaw-dropping statlines from afar.
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