Many NBA players are looking at opportunities to compete overseas during the NBA lockout.

Philadelphia 76ers guard Andre Iguodala is taking this time to plan for his future. The former University of Arizona standout spent this week shadowing a venture capitalist at the New York Stock Exchange while on a week-long internship with Bank of America Merrill Lynch, according Yahoo! Sports. Next up for Iguodala could be another internship, this time with a hedge fund or an apparel company if the lockout continues, as most expect.

“I always had an interest in what was going on in the market,” Iguodala told Yahoo! Sports. “I have a couple of teammates, Jason Kapono and Spencer Hawes, who are into it. I always read USA Today and the Wall Street Journal, and I have an E-Trade account, so the interest in finance has always been there.

“Also, being an athlete I’ve been blessed with an opportunity to make a good living and be able to hold on to a good amount of wealth. I understand that this basketball thing is a small window. The things that I’m getting from basketball … I want to stretch it out my whole life.”

Some of what Iguodala learned this week could be helpful in dealing with the negotiations between the NBA owners and players as they try to put an end to the three-month old lockout that is threatening the start of the 2011–12 season. Iguodala is likely to remain in New York through Friday to attend critical negotiating  sessions between the owners and players.

It’s good to see that Iguodala has a good understanding how this labor strife looks in the eyes of fans and the average Americans.

“It’s always been said that you have billionaires going against millionaires,” said Iguodala, who will make $13.5 million this season under terms of his current contract. “There is a saying that big money takes little money.

“It’s all about how long we can stand our ground. We really feel like we want a fair deal. We want to play basketball first and foremost, but we also understand there is a problem and we are willing to help out with that."

“I don’t feel like it’s on the players to take 100 percent of the responsibility of a franchise when [ownership] claims they’ve lost significant amounts of money.… I think we’ve given a lot already and they’re trying to see how long they can stretch us out. We haven’t started missing paychecks yet. And I think they’re killing time to the point where they can have us miss paychecks and then we’ll fold. That’s what they’re hoping.”

Contact Terrance Harris at terrancefharris@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @Terranceharris

(Photo: Rob Carr/Getty Images)