the goal of a player isn't just to play. if that were the case, guys would take less money just to play. they don't. if an athlete is worth anything, his goal is to play AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL. elite athletes are the most delusional people that i've ever been associated with. no matter the odds hitting them smack dab in the face, they still think that they're going to the league. we had a guy that was a transfer from a pac10 school. he was only ok, and only saw the field a tiny bit. but even until his sr year, he STILL thought that he'd be in the nfl. so every guy is thinking that all they need is that one chance to prove themselves on the nba level. one injury, or play one nice training camp, and you're jeremy lin. by going to europe, the likelihood of coming back to the nba, especially as a non-big, is virtually impossible. but all it takes is one team to say yes.

next, it's great to think that there are millions out there to be had in europe, but that's not necessarily the case. travis hansen did well, i guess, but does anyone know exactly how much he made? and what is the typical salary? hansen certainly is not the rule. he was the exception. but again, how much did he actually make? over ten years ago, he made $366,000 in a single year in the nba. no way was he approaching that in europe. because, again referring to what i cited, making a lot of money over there is the exception rather than the rule. drew gooden is the lowest paid player in the nba this year. his salary? $486,000. again, the LOWEST PAID PLAYER. brandon davies has made almost THREE MILLION dollars in his three years. his first year alone he made over $800,000. this year, he's over $1,000,000. http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/d/daviebr01.html if you can get through that 10 day contract craziness, your salary is guaranteed for the rest of the year. if you have to go to europe after that, fine. you've also got $800,000 in the bank.

and that's what all these guys are looking for. a shot to play with the best, and get paid. nobody wants to be on the B team. they never have. but i agree with you that if europe is his last resort, jump on it. but if there is any chance at being in the league, he's got to do that. nobody dreams about euro league ball. they dream about the nba.