HoopsHype.com Rumors

Josh Childress: We as players realize how blessed we are to play basketball and get paid very well to do so. Don't think for a second that we don't. Twitter

Phoenix Suns, Josh Childress, CBA, Lockout, NBPA 

Josh Childress: The pie would not be 50/50 cuz the owners want the players to pay expenses. They still wont open the books So we dont know what their losing Twitter

Phoenix Suns, Josh Childress, CBA, Lockout, NBPA 

Josh Childress: How many people would be perfectly fine with their boss saying they want them to take a 40% paycut cuz they want guaranteed profit yearly Twitter

Phoenix Suns, Josh Childress, CBA, Lockout, NBPA 

Josh Childress: It's hilarious how people are portraying the owners as "businessmen" and the players as greedy. Twitter

Phoenix Suns, Josh Childress, CBA, Lockout, NBPA 

Josh Childress: Name a non sports business that can guarantee profit regardless of what kind of product they put out? Twitter

Phoenix Suns, Josh Childress, CBA, Lockout, NBPA 

Josh Childress: And on top of it all the players have given back hundreds of millions of dollars a year in escrow money to the owners. Twitter

Phoenix Suns, Josh Childress, CBA, Lockout, NBPA 

Josh Childress: So to call players greedy is idiotic. We aren't asking for sympathy but we also arent going to roll over and take a raw deal so... Twitter

Phoenix Suns, Josh Childress, CBA, Lockout, NBPA 

Josh Childress: That owners can guarantee themselves a 15-20 million a year profit regardless of how they run their franchise. Twitter

Phoenix Suns, Josh Childress, CBA, Lockout, NBPA 

Josh Childress: We players get hit with about 40-43% taxes from the government and then another 8% in escrow tax from the owners. That's 50% of salary gone Twitter

Phoenix Suns, Josh Childress, CBA, Lockout, NBPA 

Josh Childress: Just so people understand.... My experience in Europe was GREAT! I just want players to be informed and prepared for their time there. Twitter

Phoenix Suns, Josh Childress, Lockout, Greece, Europe 

Greece? You’ll find legitimate NBA players considering Somalia before they entertain offers from the only two teams in Greece that can be players in the game: Olympiakos and Panathinaikos. Those two teams were a combined 57-5 in league play last season. The third place team was 16-10. “It’s ironic,’’ says agent Marc Cornstein of Pinnacle Hoops, who has extensive experience placing players in Europe. “(Olympiakos and Panathinaikos) were in the forefront with Childress and Kleiza. They were very aggressive in the past. But they are lagging because of the economic climate over there. It’s very quiet.” HoopsHype

Linas Kleiza, Josh Childress, Lockout, Greece, Marc Cornstein 

Has Cornstein heard anything about either Greek team making approaches to NBA players? “In a word – no,’’ he said. “It’s a shame, really. They were two of the biggest teams in Europe.” HoopsHype

Linas Kleiza, Josh Childress, Lockout, Greece, Marc Cornstein 

It’s also not as financially advantageous. The pro basketball players in Greece used to be taxed at a flat, 20 percent. Now, they are taxed the same as all Greek citizens and, for any highly-paid player, that means the tax would likely be 45 percent. HoopsHype

Linas Kleiza, Josh Childress, Lockout, Greece, Marc Cornstein 

Josh Childress on why he’d not advise players to play in Europe: “Well when I say I would not advise it, it’s under the premise that guys are not fully informed. I’m not saying it’s a bad idea. I did it for two years, it was a great situation for me, it was a great learning experience, but I think that for a bulk of the guys, you need to be informed. You need to make sure you have insurance, you need to just make sure you’re covered on all bases.” Sports Radio Interviews

Josh Childress, Lockout 

Has anyone contacted him from the players union about his comments since he first said them: “No, no, no. They understand where I’m coming from, and quite frankly I was just being honest. Like I said, the biggest thing is just making sure guys are informed. I would hate for a guy to not know what he’s getting in to, and I truly hope that everyone that goes has a great experience like I did.” What exactly are they ‘getting into’ as he’s alluded to: “Well it’s just a different style. It’s a different style of play, mentality, overall just a completely animal. And I think you get some situations where some coaches you’re going to get two-a-days every day, and you’re going to be playing one game a week, one to two games a week. It’s just different. There’s not a ton of things I can say about it other than it’s just different and that you’re aware of that. I wouldn’t want guys going over there thinking it’s like the NBA, because it’s not.” Sports Radio Interviews

Josh Childress, Lockout 

But don't take my word for it. Phoenix Suns swingman Josh Childress returned to the NBA this season after spending the previous two playing for the Grecian version of the Boston Celtics, Olympiacos. Now that he's back in the NBA, I asked if he'd consider returning to Europe to play during the lockout and jeopardize the last four years of his five-year, $33 million deal. "No, I wouldn't," he says. "And I don't know why guys would. I understand that guys really want to play. But you sometimes have to look at what you have and treat this as a business. The only way I could see it making sense is if you're a player from a particular country going back. But for an American player with a good-sized guaranteed deal here, I can't see why you'd do it." ESPN.com

Phoenix Suns, Josh Childress, Lockout, Greece, Europe 

One great misnomer is that a player is just as at risk of a contract-voiding injury playing at Pauley Pavilion or in some other offseason pick-up game as playing overseas. "Couldn't be further from the truth," says agent Mark Bartlestein, whose agency, Priority Sports & Entertainment, has nearly 40 NBA clients and two dozen players overseas, including Songaila. "Every NBA player contract that I'm aware of has language in it that allows them to play pick-up basketball. But you're not protected if you're playing in a summer league, charity game or for a team in Europe. For a player who is in a big-time lucrative contract, there's tremendous risk." ESPN.com

Phoenix Suns, Josh Childress, Lockout, Greece, Europe 

Childress, comparatively, signed a three-year, $20 million deal with Olympiacos, but that's when its owners were trying to make a splash and Childress had to agree to stay at least one full season. With Greece's economy in ruins, both Olympiacos and Panathanaikos are now up for sale, leaving the number of teams able and willing to offer a deal comparable to Williams' at "less than 10," according to multiple sources. Several teams from the Turkish League are spending lavishly because the country's economy is booming, but it is the exception thanks to, in part, not being a full member of the European Union. Not only are the days of the Greek government arranging tax-free concessions for its sports franchises over, but the cost of bailing out Greece has prompted other governments in the European Union to close tax loopholes for their country's teams as well. ESPN.com

Phoenix Suns, Josh Childress, Lockout, Greece, Europe 

"One of the biggest things guys will have to realize is that whatever offer you get, there's no guarantee you'll actually get all that money," Childress says. "If a guy isn't playing well or a team is out of the playoffs, they'll just stop paying you. I know tons and tons of players who just walked away because they didn't want to go through the hassle of going to court to get their money." And while Besiktas gave Williams an option to leave whenever the NBA lockout ends, the best teams in Europe are not inclined to do that. "They want to build a team, not just get guys for a few months of entertainment," Childress says. "Those teams don't look at themselves as a younger brother to the NBA or a feeder system or inferior level of competition," says one agent, who requested anonymity. "Their perception and pride is not what it was 10 years ago." ESPN.com

Phoenix Suns, Josh Childress, Lockout, Greece, Europe 

The chance of injury, or falling out of favor, is heightened by travel and training that is considerably more spartan as well. "I played for one of the biggest clubs in Europe," Childress says. "But there were still six- and seven-hour bus rides, we didn't stay at the best hotels and we flew commercial nine out of 10 times. And not all coaches care about your body. It's more military style. There's no getting tired. I'll be interested to see how guys' bodies respond." ESPN.com

Phoenix Suns, Josh Childress, Lockout, Greece, Europe