By Antigoni Zachari / info@eurohoops.net
Enes Freedom was recently waived by the Houston Rockets, after a trade deadline-day deal that also included Dennis Schroder and Bruno Fernando and sent Daniel Theis to the Boston Celtics. This move has been expected and the general notion remains that no NBA teams are actively interested to recruit Freedom.
After the news of Rockets waiving Freedom, an anonymous NBA GM commented the following to Heavy’s Steve Bulpett: “I don’t know if anyone else signs him. Maybe not. I think from a basketball standpoint, it’s really questionable. I’m not sure if any of the other stuff will even come into play. I don’t think he won’t get a job because of anything he’s said or done. I think he just doesn’t guard, and the game is changing. He plays a lot older than he really is.”
With that in mind, Freedom has begun exploring his options and a return to Europe could be possible. Prior to moving to the NBA, he has spent the 2008-09 season with Turkish powerhouse Fenerbahce.
Via a statement to OPEN TV’s ‘Open Sport’, Freedom confirmed that he plans on visiting Greece and meeting with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to discuss the Turkish refugees’ pushbacks in the Aegean, while he is open to continuing his career with a Greek club.
“Now that I have my American passport, I intend to visit Greece and meet with the prime minister, to discuss the pushbacks of Turkish refugees”, stated Freedom. “Depending on how our conversation goes, I will talk to him about the possibility of playing professionally in Greece”.
Freedom has previously expressed his desire to compete in Greece with Panathinaikos in a previous interview with OPEN TV, while he was also a reported mediator for former New York Knicks teammate Mario Hezonja’s transfer to the Greens in 2021.
The 29-year-old big has played 35 games with the Celtics this season, averaging 3.7 points, 4.6 rebounds across 11.7 minutes on the court.
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