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While things are escalating between the Star NBA players and David Stern in the Lockout meetings, Hugo Chavez took his political views into effect by keeping Venezuelan NBA player, Greivis Vasquez, in Venezuela and denying Israeli team Hapoel Jerusalem from signing the former Maryland star and currently fringe Memphis Grizzlies player.

The 24 year old guard, averaging 3.6 points and 2.2 assists in 12 minutes a night for the Grizzlies in 2010-2011, was about to sign a contract with the team from the Israeli Capital worth 28,000 dollars a month. Hugo Chavez, lets us say, not exactly a big fan of Israel (and the United States for that matter, but I guess you have to draw the line somewhere), met with Vasquez and offered him an offer he just couldn’t refused.

The offer, which will stop Vasquez from playing any basketball anywhere and with anyone, unless the NBA kicks back into action (looking rather unlikely as of now), is a two month marketing campaign with the government that should pay Vasquez 3 million Dollars. Hey, Vasquez makes just over one million in the NBA. Who can blame him?

Besides the Israeli club obviously disappointed, former Maryland teammate, DJ Strawberry, who signed with Jerusalem, who had a lot to do with Vasquez choosing to come to Israel, was obviously stunned as well. Like I said, I don’t blame Vasquez for taking the money, most people who aren’t Multi-Millionaires would, but it’s sad the politics and hate change the course of an athlete’s career.