Mar 28, 2015; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder center Enes Kanter (34) watches from the bench area late during the second half against the Utah Jazz at EnergySolutions Arena. The Jazz won 94-89. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports

Ever have that itch that simply won’t go away? You rub, you scratch, you do everything short of getting a skin graft, but the annoyance pervades nonetheless. If you’re a Utah Jazz fan, that itch is Enes Kanter. You may have thought it was gone for good, but today it’s back in a big, bad way.

In an article by Anthony Slater appearing in The Oklahoman, Kanter reveals that he never wanted to be drafted by the Jazz. He is even quoted as saying that he made an active effort not to have contact with the team in the weeks leading up to the draft:

Cleveland had the first pick, Minnesota had the second. He flew out to both cities for a workout. But Utah had the third pick, and Enes didn’t want to go there. It wasn’t anything against the Jazz organization, but rather the logjam of big men it already had in tow. Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap were the established starters. Turkish legend Mehmet Okur was the veteran backup. Derrick Favors, a young talent, had arrived the year before. “They told me to come to Utah for draft practices. I didn’t go to Utah,” he said. “They came to Chicago. And you know how players meet in hotel rooms team to team. I didn’t meet with Utah.”

Now, I fully respect any player’s thought process on where they will or won’t play basketball. After all, it’s their livelihood, and the Jazz were a team with a loaded frontcourt. What makes the whole thing hard to swallow is Enes’ comments following his selection by Utah:

Hey @Enes_Kanter just stop talking about the Jazz. You say you never wanted to be here? This is from 2011.. pic.twitter.com/Mo3zAX89ic — Spencer Wixom (@JazzJargon) April 12, 2015

Given the fact that it’s Kanter, whose history for making antagonizing comments is well-documented, it’s hard to know what to make of these revelations. The continually dramatic and contradictory undertones in his statements better lend themselves to a certain Britney Spears chorus than professional basketball.

From Spears’ 2000 hit “Oops!… I Did It Again”:

Oops, I did it again.

I played with your heart, got lost in the game-

Oh baby, baby!

Oops, you think I’m in love.

That I’m sent from above.

I’m not that innocent!

If there’s anything Kanter is not, it’s innocent. Moreover, the big man seems lost in a mind game of his own devising.

Slater’s profile is a great read that poses interesting questions about a distrust of organizations that stems back to Kanter’s battle with the NCAA over his eligibility with the Kentucky Wildcats. Still, a true professional probably wouldn’t continue to harp on the folly of his former club.

The Utah Jazz have moved on. Fans are trying to follow suit. Kanter should do the same. As the Backstreet Boys might say, “Quit playing games with our hearts.”