By Stavros Barbarousis / info@eurohoops.net
Panathinaikos OPAP Athens continues building up its roster for next season and has a one-year deal in place with Derrick Williams, according to Eurohoops sources. The Greens welcomed the latest newcomer announcing his addition later Friday.
Per the press release: “Panathinaikos OPAP announces the signing of Derrick Williams (31 years old, 2.03 meters) on a contract for the upcoming season.
Williams is a basketball player, born on May 31, 1991 in California, USA. He is a power forward who last played for Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv.
He was selected with the second overall pick by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2011 NBA draft. He has played a total of 428 NBA games averaging 8.9 points and 4 per game.
Williams was picked second in the 2011 NBA draft by Minnesota, right after Kyrie Irving was selected first. He played three years for the Timberwolves and then for Sacramento, New York, Miami and Cleveland.
After a short period in China, Williams has already completed 4 years in the Euroleague (he averaged 10.6 points and 3.5 rebounds per game): at Bayern Munich in the 2018-19 season, then at Fenerbahce, at Valencia in the 2020-2021 season and at Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv in the 2021-2022 season.”
Williams, 31, spent the previous campaign with Maccabi Tel Aviv and had an average of 9.4 points, 3.1 rebounds and 0.9 assists across 35 EuroLeague games, in his fourth overall season in the competition.
The former No. 2 overall pick of the 2011 NBA draft landed in Europe in 2018-19 with Bayern and has since joined Fenerbahce and Valencia.
Williams had a total of 425 participations across his lengthy NBA career (2011-2018) with stops at the Minnesota Timberwolves, Sacramento Kings, New York Knicks, Miami Heat, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Los Angeles Lakers.
Besides the addition of Williams, Panathinaikos has also inked Andrew Andrews to a 1+1-year deal, Eurohoops sources further confirm. Andrews led Bursaspor to the 2022 EuroCup Final, with an average of 14 points (39.8% three-pointers), 2.6 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game.
Photo credit: EuroLeague