According to Yahoo Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski, the Philadelphia 76ers have suspended forward Andrei Kirilenko for his "failure to report to the team".
Kirilenko was acquired from the Brooklyn Nets, along with point guard Jorge Gutierrez and a 2020 2nd round draft pick, on December 10, 2014. The Sixers sent 23-year-old forward Brandon Davies to the Nets, along with rights for Brooklyn to swap 2nd-round picks in 2018. Gutierrez was since waived by Philadelphia, a couple of days after the trade.
The main motivation for the Sixers in asking Kirilenko to condition himself and suit up to play is so they can flip him by the February 19th trading deadline. Kirilenko, according to Wojnarowski, has had medical issues within his family which explains his absence:
Kirilenko has a family medical issue that has kept him in the New York-area since the trade, and that’s been part of his desire to stay off the court in Philadelphia. Nevertheless, the Sixers believe their close proximity to New York – and the franchise’s expressed willingness to be accommodating on the matter – should necessitate Kirilenko to come to Philadelphia and report to work.
Another reason why Kirilenko may not have reported to his new team yet is because of a dispute in agreement with Sixers' general manager, Sam Hinkie. According to Bob Ford of the Philadelphia Inquirer:
According to two sources with inside knowledge of the negotiations, the Sixers had agreed to release veteran forward Andrei Kirilenko after the trade was consummated, but did not follow through on that handshake deal. Kirilenko, who played only seven games with the Nets this season, remains on the Sixers roster but has refused to join the team despite a request to do so.
Wojnarowski writes the stipulations of the suspension:
Under the suspension, Kirilenko is unable to collect the balance of his $3.3 million salary. The NBA was made aware of the suspension in the past several days, sources said, but the Sixers had not made the information public.
The 33-year-old forward has spent most of his NBA career with the Utah Jazz, who selected him 24th overall in the 1999 NBA Draft. He did not come over to the NBA until 2001, however, as he fulfilled his contract with his Russian team, the PBC CSKA Moscow.
Kirilenko's best season came in 2003-2004, when he was named an All-Star and averaged 16.5 points per game, along with 8.1 rebounds per game.
| Season | Age | Tm | G | GS | MP | FG% | 3P% | FT% | ORB | DRB | TRB | AST | STL | BLK | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001-02 | 20 | UTA | 82 | 40 | 26.2 | .450 | .250 | .768 | 1.8 | 3.1 | 4.9 | 1.1 | 1.4 | 1.9 | 10.7 |
| 2002-03 | 21 | UTA | 80 | 11 | 27.7 | .491 | .325 | .800 | 1.8 | 3.4 | 5.3 | 1.7 | 1.5 | 2.2 | 12.0 |
| 2003-04 ★ | 22 | UTA | 78 | 78 | 37.1 | .443 | .338 | .790 | 2.9 | 5.2 | 8.1 | 3.1 | 1.9 | 2.8 | 16.5 |
| 2004-05 | 23 | UTA | 41 | 37 | 32.9 | .493 | .299 | .784 | 2.2 | 4.0 | 6.2 | 3.2 | 1.6 | 3.3 | 15.6 |
| 2005-06 | 24 | UTA | 69 | 63 | 37.7 | .460 | .308 | .699 | 2.3 | 5.7 | 8.0 | 4.3 | 1.5 | 3.2 | 15.3 |
| 2006-07 | 25 | UTA | 70 | 70 | 29.3 | .471 | .213 | .728 | 1.3 | 3.4 | 4.7 | 2.9 | 1.1 | 2.1 | 8.3 |
| 2007-08 | 26 | UTA | 72 | 72 | 30.8 | .506 | .379 | .770 | 1.7 | 3.0 | 4.7 | 4.0 | 1.2 | 1.5 | 11.0 |
| 2008-09 | 27 | UTA | 67 | 10 | 27.3 | .449 | .274 | .785 | 1.3 | 3.5 | 4.8 | 2.6 | 1.2 | 1.1 | 11.6 |
| 2009-10 | 28 | UTA | 58 | 35 | 29.0 | .506 | .292 | .744 | 1.3 | 3.2 | 4.6 | 2.7 | 1.4 | 1.2 | 11.9 |
| 2010-11 | 29 | UTA | 64 | 62 | 31.2 | .467 | .367 | .770 | 1.6 | 3.5 | 5.1 | 3.0 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 11.7 |
| 2012-13 | 31 | MIN | 64 | 64 | 31.8 | .507 | .292 | .752 | 1.6 | 4.1 | 5.7 | 2.8 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 12.4 |
| 2013-14 | 32 | BRK | 45 | 4 | 19.0 | .513 | .200 | .513 | 1.2 | 2.0 | 3.2 | 1.6 | 0.9 | 0.4 | 5.0 |
| 2014-15 | 33 | BRK | 7 | 0 | 5.1 | .000 | .750 | 0.3 | 0.9 | 1.1 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.4 | |
| Career | 797 | 546 | 30.0 | .474 | .310 | .754 | 1.8 | 3.7 | 5.5 | 2.7 | 1.4 | 1.8 | 11.8 | ||
| 10 seasons | UTA | 681 | 478 | 30.8 | .470 | .312 | .763 | 1.8 | 3.8 | 5.6 | 2.8 | 1.4 | 2.0 | 12.4 | |
| 1 season | MIN | 64 | 64 | 31.8 | .507 | .292 | .752 | 1.6 | 4.1 | 5.7 | 2.8 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 12.4 | |
| 2 seasons | BRK | 52 | 4 | 17.2 | .497 | .200 | .520 | 1.1 | 1.9 | 3.0 | 1.4 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 4.4 |
Matt Rappa (@mattrappa) is a contributor to Sixerdelphia.com.
