NBA free agent forward Sam Young is going to Australia. The 28-year-old NBA free agent forward signed a contract with the Sydney Kings in the National Basketball League.

Young recently signed with the San Antonio Spurs in the National Basketball Association but was waived in the preseason.

While Young’s NBA career is currently on hold, the financial windfall for the forward is well worth it.

“Sam had other options, but this one made the most sense and will pay him as the highest player in the league,” said Joel Bell, Young’s agent, in an interview with Shams Charania ‏of realgm.com.

Aside from the huge pay, the apparent deal-breaker was the opt-out clause in the contract where he can leave the team if there is an NBA offer before the start of the NBL postseason.

Young is a 6-foot-6 guard-forward who can be effective on both ends of the floor. In the NBA, he was a role player who guarded the opposition’s wingmen and showed some promise on offense.

In the NBL, he is expected to be one of the primary offensive options under head coach Shane Heal, the popular Australian basketball legend.

Young was drafted by the Memphis Grizzlies as the 6th pick in the second round of the 2009 NBA Draft. He had respectable stats with the Grizzlies with 7.4 PPG and 2.5 RPG in 18 minutes per outing. He had a very brief stint with the Philadelphia 76ers in 2011 and saw action for 56 games for the Pacers in 2012-2013.

The Sydney Kings are currently tied third place in the NBL team standings with a 3-3 win-loss record. The Kings take on the Townsville Crocodiles on Friday, Nov 15, but will probably miss the services of the freshly signed Young for that game.

However, Young will definitely be available on Sunday, Nov 24, when the Kings face off with the Perth Wildcats, which owns a 7-0 win-loss card.