Free-agent forward Wilson Chandler, who spent last season with the Knicks and Denver Nuggets, has signed a contract with the Zhejiang Guangsha of the Chinese Basketball Association.
The Chinese league will not allow contracts with an opt-out that allows players to return to the NBA when the lockout is settled, so this move means Chandler will not play in the NBA this season. Chandler is by far the most prominent NBA player to sign a deal with no opt-out.
The move is a gamble for the 24-year-old swingman, but could be a very smart one. By signing now, Chandler locks up one of a limited number of Chinese Basketball Association spots available to foreign players - CBA clubs are limited to two foreigners per team. If the NBA season is cancelled, he'll still draw a pay check. And he'll have the option to return for the 2012-13 season.
Even if the NBA does resume business in time to have a 2011-12 season, the free agency period will be truncated. Waiting until next year to hit the market may also work to Chandler's advantage.
And, as Newsday's Alan Hahn points out, in 2012, the Knicks are expected to have money to spend.
Chandler is technically a restricted free agent; the Nuggets have the right to match any NBA contract offer he receives. In the past, teams with RFAs that signed overseas retained that right. Josh Childress was a RFA when he headed to Greece, but the Hawks retained the right to match contract offers while he was overseas. He was traded to the Phoenix Suns upon his return. Of course, there's no guarantee that restricted free agent status will exist in the next collective bargaining agreement.
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