With the NBA lockout in full swing, the players are looking to find ways to ply their trade any way they can. Deron Williams, an All-Star point guard from the New Jersey Nets, is looking to play overseas and it looks like he has a contract offer to do so. Williams signed a contract with the Turkish team, Besiktas. There is a provision in the contract Williams would be signing allowing him to leave team once the lockout for the NBA is over and the season begins. Before Williams can join the Turkish team, FIBA, the international governing body for basketball, would need to approve of the contract with the stipulations that are in it. It has been rumored that Bestikas is also trying to get Kobe Bryant with the same type of contract. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.

So is it a good idea to have the best players in the best league in the world playing overseas to make some extra cash? It has its pluses and minuses to say the least. Some of the minuses include possible injury, taking jobs away from players who need the income from playing overseas, and not presenting a unified front for the players union. Some of the pluses are that the players can still play a game they love despite not making nearly as much money and they can return when the season begins again.

It is an interesting conundrum and one FIBA will have to answer as more star players are presented with similar options. So what do you think of the situation?