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Combo guard Alexey Shved turned down the New York Knicks in favor of a return to his home country of Russia.
Shved signed with Khimki Moscow on Wednesday, the team announced. Shved will earn $10.2 million through 2018, reports international basketball reporter David Pick.
Alexey Shved signed a monster $10.2 million deal with Khimki till 2018. Highest paid baller overseas.
— David Pick (@IAmDPick) July 16, 2015
Shved's deal with Khimki Moscow reportedly includes an out clause for a potential return to the NBA. The Knicks had the option to pursue Shved with their room exception (worth $2.8 million), but he turned down their overtures.
Instead, Shved returns to Russia, where he began his professional career. He started out with CKSA Moscow as an 18-year-old, but was shortly loaned to Khimki, before returning to CKSA between 2007 and 2012.
As a teenager, Shved rarely saw playing time, but he eventually became a regular in CKSA's rotation, averaging 10.6 points and three rebounds in 21.6 minutes per game in 2011-12. Shved also helped CKSA to a Euroleague championship in 2008.
Shved then made the jump to the NBA, where he averaged 7.4 points and 2.5 assists across three seasons with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Philadelphia 76ers, Houston Rockets and Knicks.
It's a bold move on Shved's part to return to Europe during his prime. At the age of 26, he is still a useful rotation piece who can score and create for others. Shved even expressed interest in returning to New York in March.
However, a chance to return home proved too hard to pass up. A higher salary and a chance to captain his own team in his home country carries a powerful allure.
