By HOWARD BECK and PETE THAMEL
Deron Williams is set to become the biggest N.B.A. star to play in Europe — a development that is bursting with intrigue, risks and caveats.
Williams, the Nets’ star point guard, has agreed in principle to a one-year deal with the Turkish club Besiktas, according to the team’s coach. His commitment would begin Sept. 1 — when the N.B.A.’s lockout would be two months old — and the deal includes an escape clause allowing him to return when the lockout ends.
“It’s the biggest signing in the history of European basketball,” Ergin Ataman, Besiktas’ excitable coach, said Thursday.
The agreement was confirmed by Misko Raznatovic, a European agent who works with Jeff Schwartz, the Los Angeles-based agent who represents Williams. Ataman and Raznatovic first met last month in Istanbul to discuss possible deals involving N.B.A. players.
Reports have pegged Williams’s salary between $200,000 and $350,000 a month, or $2 million to $3.5 million for the 10-month Turkish league season. Raznatovic said that Williams, 27, would get between $1 million and $5 million, plus a car, housing and the tax breaks associated with playing overseas. He will also be provided with a security guard, driver and personal assistant, all of them available 24 hours a day. Ataman later told SI.com that Williams’s deal would be paid for by a sponsor.
Ataman said he expected the deal to become official within 24 hours, and that the club’s president, Yildirim Demiroren, would hold a news conference in the United States next week.
Besiktas opens its season Sept. 27. If Williams is on the court, he would be — by far — the biggest N.B.A. star to play overseas in his prime. But that day is far away, and Williams must first gain approval from the N.B.A. and FIBA, the world governing body for basketball.
In general, FIBA and the N.B.A. have an arrangement that precludes teams from signing players who are already under contract. But that agreement became moot July 1, when the N.B.A.’s labor deal expired and the league locked out its players.
“If there’s a lockout, the players are free; their contracts are suspended,” Commissioner David Stern said in February. “It’s that simple.”
N.B.A. officials reaffirmed that position Thursday, but indicated that they had not received any inquiry from FIBA regarding Williams.
FIBA has the authority to reject the deal if it determines, for instance, that signing N.B.A. players poses a risk to the stability of the European leagues — because those players could leave at any time once the lockout ends. But there are no indications that FIBA intends to intervene.
FIBA has not yet been approached by Besiktas or the Turkish league regarding the Williams deal, according to a spokesman. It also has not established a policy for N.B.A. players under contract.
“We are currently working on a statement that will be sent to our membership and their clubs, that will clarify the legal situation,” Patrick Koller, FIBA’s head of communications, said in an e-mail.
Even if he gains approval, Williams could be risking the $34 million and two years left on his deal with the Nets. N.B.A. contracts are not insured against injuries sustained in another league. Conceivably, Besiktas could pay to insure Williams’s Nets contract, but it could cost as much as $6.8 million.
The Nets have no ability to block the move. Nor can team officials comment publicly, because Stern has prohibited all N.B.A. personnel from talking about players during the lockout.
News of Williams’s deal with Besiktas was greeted with surprise and heavy skepticism by a number of N.B.A. agents and executives Thursday. One prominent agent said it was not worth the risk and expressed doubt that Williams would ever put on a Besiktas uniform.
“A lot can happen in two months,” said the agent, who did not want to be named discussing a player he did not represent.
Skeptics also cited a weak European economy and a history of European clubs failing to pay their players. Last season, Besiktas players briefly staged a strike when the team fell behind in paying them.
Although some N.B.A. stars have played overseas — notably Dominique Wilkins and Bob McAdoo — all of them made the move in the twilight of their careers. Allen Iverson played briefly for Besiktas last season, because no N.B.A. team would sign him. In 1989, Danny Ferry, the No. 2 pick in the draft, left for Italy rather than play for the dysfunctional Los Angeles Clippers. Despite his high draft standing, Ferry never became a star once he returned to the N.B.A.
Williams is different. He is a two-time All-Star and is widely regarded, along with Chris Paul of New Orleans, as one of the game’s top two point guards. The Nets are counting on him to be their franchise player for years to come, and to help attract crowds when they move to Brooklyn in 2012.
If Williams plays for Besiktas, he will likely be an anomaly. Few teams in Europe have the resources to pay top N.B.A. players. And the best teams, including those in the Euroleague, will be reluctant to break up their rosters just to rent an N.B.A. player for a month or two.
“This will be, I think, a fairly unique situation,” said Marc Cornstein, an N.B.A. agent who represents several international players. “Because you’re just not going to find a real combination of teams that can afford these kind of salaries, but also be willing to let a guy go the minute the lockout ends.”
Ataman said Zaza Pachulia, who plays for the Atlanta Hawks, also has an agreement to play for Besiktas. And the club is not done recruiting locked-out N.B.A. players, he said.
“If there’s a possibility, we’ll talk with Kobe 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 acknowledged the risk that the lockout would end and Williams would leave. But, he said, “We’re happy, because Turkish boys will watch him play live.”
Pete Thamel contributed reporting.