Kenyon Martin: Former Nuggets Forward Escapes China Deal

It looks like the daring escape of former Nuggets star Kenyon Martin from China will not be as daring now that he has reached a buyout deal with Xinjiang of the China Basketball Association.

Martin had jumped on playing basketball overseas when the lockout was in place, but since the season wasn’t canceled, Martin wanted to come back to the NBA.

While he will be coming back at some point, it will not be right away. Part of the deal reached with his Chinese team says that Martin must finish the season with the Chinese team before being allowed to play again in the NBA.

NBA Insider for Yahoo! Sports is reporting on twitter:

I can only imagine that J.R. Smith will look at this as the precedent to get out of his deal in China as well, but now the NBA can get back the wild cards that make the league fun.

It will be hard to see either of these players going anywhere but Denver at this point, but there are several teams in need of the contributions that Martin can provide.

A veteran power forward who adds both grit and talent at both ends of the floor could be the kind of player that any contending team may look at. The attitude may turn many teams off, but it won’t keep everyone away.

At the end of the day, Martin is the kind of wild man that makes the NBA fun to watch, and whenever he gets back, it will be great for the league.

Check back for more on the National Basketball Association as it comes, and check out Bleacher Report’s NBA Page to get your fill of all things basketball.

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