Leon Williams has lost the case he filed with the BNXT League licensing committee. The basketball player still had a contract for one season with the bankrupt Donar and wanted that commitment to be respected after the club’s restart. The licensing committee did not agree.
Williams has played for Donar since 2019 and last season was captain of the club that lost in a thrilling final for the national title against ZZ Leiden. Williams still had a one-year contract with Donar, but saw it torn up when the club declared bankruptcy last summer.
Submit salary
After Donar’s restart, several players received new contract proposals. The offer for Williams was a one-season contract at 62.5 percent of the salary he earned last season. Williams and his agent Jan Lugtenburg did not agree to this, but said they wanted to discuss a multi-year contract for a lower fee. There were no negotiations. Donar also withdrew the contract proposal.
Williams, who became the father of son Leon Jr. in August, then decided to enforce through the licensing committee of the BNXT League that Donar had to adhere to the existing contract from before the bankruptcy. After a hearing on August 25, the committee decided last week that Williams’ old contract is no longer legally valid. This means that the door of Martiniplaza remains closed for Williams.
Williams disappointed
Williams is disappointed with the licensing committee’s decision. “It’s quite disappointing that it turned out this way. I would have liked to stay with Donar. The conditions in Donar’s new contract saved me a sip on a drink. But we did indicate that we were willing to think along with the club. There was no response to that. I was then called into the office and told that there was no longer a place for me at Donar. That was a slap in the face.”
Williams still lives in Groningen in a house owned by Donar. “My agent is in discussions with the club about how this will be resolved.” In the meantime, Williams is looking for a new club. “Of course I have to have a job. I would have preferred to stay with Donar, but unfortunately that’s the way it is now. I don’t know yet whether it will be a club in the Netherlands or elsewhere. It is not a good thing that it is so late in the preparation, because that limits the choices. In that respect, I don’t think it is very nice of Donar that the decision was made so late.”
The basketball player could not say whether Williams will appeal the ruling of the licensing committee. “I’m not concerned with that now. Right now I’m trying to enjoy the little one we have now as much as possible.”
Private matter
Interim manager Jakob Klompien did not want to say much about the matter. “We consider this a private matter and do not feel the need to provide explanations. I would like to say that I hear and read a lot of untruths. We do not recognize ourselves in the image painted by Williams.”