It used to be the case that the NBA was the only show in town. If you played professional basketball, you played for the NBA in the United States, and that was that. Case closed. No arguing. Thank you very much.
That, much to the owners chagrin, is no longer the case.
In fact, New Jersey Nets guard Deron Williams, who has verified the recent reports of his intention to sign a deal with Turkish basketball club Beskitas, believes that many more players could follow him to Europe.
In an interview on Friday with ESPN's Chris Broussard, Williams said, "If the proposal [the owners] have, if that's what they're sticking with and that's what they want, then I think it would be hard for a lot of guys to come back to the NBA."
That's right. Not only does Williams think more players could join him, he also thinks they might set up camp permanently in Europe, where deals could potentially be more lucrative than they would be in the NBA if the owners get their way at the bargaining table.
"I've talked to a lot of players, you would be surprised," Williams said, without revealing any names. "I talked to a few before and I knew some guys were considering it as well. But since it came out, it was just like a snowball of guys calling me [saying] 'What are you doing? When are you leaving?' And guys want to go too. They want to do it."
Any way you slice it, that has to be a potentially scary thought for the owners.
