At his end of season press conference Tuesday, Nets general manager Billy King said he would be at next week’s Euroleague Final Four in Istanbul, Turkey.
The purpose of King’s visit is to meet with small forward Bojan Bogdanovic, the team’s second-round draft pick in 2011, who plays for Fenerbache in the Turkish league. But it will also provide King an opportunity to watch Andrei Kirilenko in person with the forward’s team, CSKA Moscow, playing in the Final Four.
A report by Aroundthheworldbasketball.com Wednesday said that the Nets are nearing a verbal agreement on a three-year deal with the 6-foot-10 small forward, who had spent ten years playing for Utah before heading back to Russia for this past season.
However, multiple sources said that while the Nets have monitored Kirilenko’s play this season for CSKA Moscow, the report saying the two sides are nearing a verbal agreement is inaccurate.
Kirilenko has averaged 12.3 points and 6.2 rebounds in 22.1 minutes in the Russian League and 14 points and 7.2 rebounds in 15 Euroleague games this season for CSKA Moscow, which was formerly owned by Mikhail Prokhorov, the Nets’ majority owner and is one of world’s elite teams outside of the NBA. Whether he chose to return to the NBA for next season or not, the 31-year-old Kirilenko cannot sign with the Nets or any other NBA team until July 12, when free agents are officially allowed to sign with teams for the 2012-13 season.
The Nets enter this offseason with four of their 15 players – MarShon Brooks, Anthony Morrow, Jordan Williams and Johan Petro – under contract for next season.
tbontemps@nypost.com