Darko Milicic, arguably one of the biggest draft busts in NBA history, is quitting basketball to start a kickboxing career, reports ESPN.
Milicic, 29, signed a deal Wednesday with the World Kickboxing Association to be both a promoter and a competitor. This move comes after nearly two full years without an NBA contract.
Milicic, all 7 feet and 250 pounds of him, was selected second overall by the Detroit Pistons behind LeBron James in the 2003 draft. Milicic, who never averaged more than 25 minutes in any of his 10 NBA seasons, was taken before current NBA stars Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade and David West.
Milicic's initial interest in kickboxing was sparked when he discovered a humanitarian campaign that was raising funds by auctioning a kickboxing world title belt.
"When I got home, I told myself: Why buy it if you can win it?" Milicic said.
"I won't go deep into this [kickboxing] if I cannot be devoted to it 100 percent. We will see what happens."
