Original Est Republicain article (French). Automatic translation. The report notes that "there has been contact" between Batum and SLUC Nancy, a club in France's Pro A league. -------------------- Update (Tuesday, 9:41 AM): Batum has confirmed his interested in playing for Nancy in an interview with Ouest-France.Fr. Translation by HoopsHype. ------------------------------ "I've always said I don't want to be without playing three or four months and that if I returned to France, it would be with a team that plays European competitions, notably the Euroleague. There's nothing official, but Nancy is an interesting club that has had great results and who's been often in the finals of the French League the last few years with Jean-Luc Monschau. It's a very good head coach, he has a good staff: there's talent in the club and it's true that we've had some contacts. ------------------------------ Comments from Norsktroll: It's only in the early stages, but there seems to be a trend of NBA players having their agents talk to teams in Europe to have a viable alternative if the lockout should go on for a longer time. The article mentions fellow French players Parker, Seraphin and Diaw having similar talks with different teams. And it's not just an option for international players, some US players are having first discussions too (e.g. a Finnish team announced they have signed Ron "Metta World Peace" Artest for some games in September, the agency of Roy and LaMarcus is planning to host a tournament in China to raise money for their clients, ...). If enough players go this route it might weaken the negotiation position of the owners, even if it's only used as a threat by some players who aren't really serious about it. -------------------- ed: bumped to front page and updated.