Detroit Pistons forward DaJuan Summers is the latest NBA player coming home early from an overseas job. He left his Italian team after only four games.
Any other American NBA player considering making a similar job to Europe or Asia during the ongoing lockout might want to talk to Summers first.
“I would tell them to be prepared for any and everything because it’s a different world than what you are used to,” Summers told Yahoo! Sports in a phone interview from Italy.
Summers, 23, played for the Pistons the past two seasons, averaging 3.2 points as a reserve, but struggled to crack the team’s regular rotation given the number of forwards on the roster. Shortly after the lockout began, Summers signed a two-year contract with European powerhouse Montepaschi Siena. Siena finished third in the 2011 Euroleague Final Four and has won four straight Italian League championships.
“They were telling me how much they wanted me to be a part of the team,” Summers said. “With those things considered, I thought it was a good move to get that exposure with the top Italian League, as well as a top Euroleague team.” …
The team gave Summers and his girlfriend and son a nice three-bedroom house in Siena’s countryside. But though Siena is a popular Italian tourist destination, Summers had trouble adapting to living in a small town – and he thinks team officials picked up on it.
— Reported by Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports
