...AND the team owner want's Kobe TOO!
New Jersey Nets guard Deron Williams is planning to play in Turkey in the fall if the NBA lockout has not yet been settled.
Scott Van Pelt
ESPN's Michael Wilbon talks about the possibility of NBA players going oversees during the lockout. Plus, Wilbon says this lockout could be worse than 1999.
Williams' newly hired agent, Jeff Schwartz, on Thursday confirmed to ESPN The Magazine's Ric Bucher a report from the Turkey-based sports outlet NTV Spor that the All-Star point guard has struck an agreement in principal to play for Besiktas, which is the club that briefly employed Allen Iverson last season.
Williams' deal will be for one year and $5 million, sources told ESPN The Magazine's Chris Broussard.
Besiktas coach Ergin Ataman told the New York Times that the team also has an agreement with Atlanta Hawks center Zaza Pachulia.
Ataman told the newpaper Besiktas isn't done chasing NBA players.
"If there's a possibility, we'll talk with Kobe (Bryant) if he'd like to play in Europe with Deron and with other guys to play we can talk with him," Ataman said. "If Kobe would like to play with us, we will also contact his agent and maybe with him."
Ataman told the newspaper that Williams' deal would become official in the next 24 hours and that the club's president, Seref Yalcin, would join Williams for a news conference in the United States next week. Besiktas officials held a similar news conference in New York when they signed Iverson last October.
Sources say Williams would not be required to report to the Turkish club before the end of August or early September and that his deal with them would include an immediate out that allows him to return to the NBA as soon as the work stoppage ends.
Agent: Deron Williams of New Jersey Nets to play in Turkey if lockout continues - ESPN New York
New Jersey Nets guard Deron Williams is planning to play in Turkey in the fall if the NBA lockout has not yet been settled.
Scott Van Pelt
ESPN's Michael Wilbon talks about the possibility of NBA players going oversees during the lockout. Plus, Wilbon says this lockout could be worse than 1999.
Williams' newly hired agent, Jeff Schwartz, on Thursday confirmed to ESPN The Magazine's Ric Bucher a report from the Turkey-based sports outlet NTV Spor that the All-Star point guard has struck an agreement in principal to play for Besiktas, which is the club that briefly employed Allen Iverson last season.
Williams' deal will be for one year and $5 million, sources told ESPN The Magazine's Chris Broussard.
Besiktas coach Ergin Ataman told the New York Times that the team also has an agreement with Atlanta Hawks center Zaza Pachulia.
Ataman told the newpaper Besiktas isn't done chasing NBA players.
"If there's a possibility, we'll talk with Kobe (Bryant) if he'd like to play in Europe with Deron and with other guys to play we can talk with him," Ataman said. "If Kobe would like to play with us, we will also contact his agent and maybe with him."
Ataman told the newspaper that Williams' deal would become official in the next 24 hours and that the club's president, Seref Yalcin, would join Williams for a news conference in the United States next week. Besiktas officials held a similar news conference in New York when they signed Iverson last October.
Sources say Williams would not be required to report to the Turkish club before the end of August or early September and that his deal with them would include an immediate out that allows him to return to the NBA as soon as the work stoppage ends.
Agent: Deron Williams of New Jersey Nets to play in Turkey if lockout continues - ESPN New York
::haha:haha
