Kyle Korver backs Deron Williams over the Turkish expedition – NBA News
Chicago Bulls shooting guard Kyle Korver has backed New Jersey Nets super star Deron Williams over the latter’s decision to play overseas during the NBA lockout. Williams signed a deal with Turkish club Besiktas early in the summer
and remains the most high profile NBA player to commit to a foreign club in the lockout so far.
Besiktas have shown considerable ambition during the NBA off season and have looked to take advantage of the lockout caused by a dispute over a new Collective Bargaining Agreement or CBA. Since the players and NBA owners have been
unable to resolve their differences so far, more and more are looking to get some work elsewhere.
Besiktas secured the signing of Williams early and then went after Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant, although that venture ultimately proved fruitless. They are also rumoured to be interested in Oklahoma City Thunder forward
Kevin Durant.
Williams’ decision to sign a contract, worth around $5 million for the season, drew mixed reactions from the NBA. Many players took confidence from Deron and started flirting with the idea of playing abroad themselves. Others however
have questioned the wisdom of a player who already has some injury issues. With no insurance provided by the NBA during the lockout, there is a certain element of risk playing overseas.
Korver however believes otherwise. The guard was a teammate of Deron Williams when the duo played at the Utah Jazz. He has fond memories of the point guard from Utah and revealed in an interview that Deron has made the decision
for the right reasons. He also disclosed that it was not an impulsive move as Williams mulled over it for quite a while.
"He's been thinking about this for like a year," Korver said of Williams. "It's something that he's really wanted to do. I think he wants to go there for the basketball. He wants to [have] the window of when he can play and play
at a high level. And he wants to take advantage of it. I think he sees the bigger picture; both for himself from a marketing standpoint and also, he has a young family. And to have your kids overseas at a younger age and obviously taken well care of and [having]
school over there, I think it's a great experience for them. He's got four kids. So he's really excited about it."
Korver himself though is not a fan of playing overseas. The Bulls player just got married this summer and intends to enjoy his break rather than go to work again, this time in Europe.
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