The 26-year-old Lithuanian decided to return back to the NBA after a stellar season in Olympiakos, where he led the Greek side to the Euroleague final last season. Having signed a two year contract which was worth in extent of $12 million, Kleiza decided to use his option and pulled out of the second year to return to NBA, choosing long-term financial security and guaranteed income for the foreseeable future opposed to the risky, unpredictable and by far not guaranteed money in Europe. Comparing his four-year, $18.8 million deal with the Toronto Raptors in the summer, it certainly looked like a downgrade in the short-term.
According to Greek media, the wear-and-tear that Kleiza had gone through during the years of playing basketball had left his knees and waist in danger of a serious injury. A person, claiming to have inside knowledge from the medical staff of Olympiakos, lodged what then, in the September of 2009, looked like a far-fetched long-shot in a comment under an article about Kleiza, saying that ‘in some three or four years problems in the fatigued points are likely to show’. It hasn’t been full two years and Kleiza needed a massive surgery to remove the nagging problems in the player’s right knee.
Simonas Baranauskas is the senior writer for LithuaniaBasketball.com. You can follow him on twitter at @LithuaniaBasket.
