Zaza Pachulia Changes Mind On Turkey As Mo Evans, Etan Thomas Consider Overseas Hoops

Zaza Pachulia won't be playing in Turkey after all. The reserve Atlanta Hawks center announced via Twitter that he was not headed to play alongside Deron Williams for that Besiktas team that seems to be flirting with Kobe Bryant instead.

@zaza27Zaza Pachulia 

There was lot of talking me going to play for Besiktas during lockout.We couldn't agree on the terms and I'm not going to play for them.

Josh Childress On Playing Overseas

Hawks Jamal Crawford Could Follow Zaza Pachulia To Turkey Or Play In Europe

Add Jamal Crawford to the list of players that may be headed to Turkey or elsewhere in Europe.

Our own Kris Willis from Peachtree Hoops (and college basketball and Atlanta Dream editor on SB Nation Atlanta) picked up on a piece behind one of those silly ESPN paywalls, which revealed that the Atlanta Hawks sixth-man is looking to take his services to the same Turkish league that will likely see Zaza Pachulia and Deron Williams lacing up the athletic shoes when the start of the season is probably delayed by heavy-handed NBA commissioner David Stern's silly little lockout.

While Pachulia and Williams will probably play for the Besiktas team, Crawford would probably play for a different team in Turkey or elsewhere in Europe.

The only difference in the negotiations is that Crawford is a free agent. That has made some of his potential suitors more reluctant to give the 2009-10 NBA Sixth Man of the Year an out-clause in his contract like Pachulia and Williams will have when their deals are finalized.

That's a non-starter with Crawford's agent Aaron Goodwin.

"So far in the conversations for Jamal Crawford, teams have shown [both a] reluctance and a willingness to have that clause in there," Goodwin said. "Obviously, we would never pursue it without a clause being in there where the player can opt out."

Playing abroad seems to be the trend -- or at least a strategy -- for the players in during the lockout. Also headed to Europe are Toronto Raptors swingman (and former Arkansas star) Sonny Weems and Darius Songaila of the Philadelphia 76ers.

Of course, Stern could stem the tide if he and the players union actually got to the negotiating table and worked out a deal. But that's about as likely right now as Stern's little buddy Gary Bettman reversing course and bringing the Atlanta Thrashers back from Winnipeg. Not going to happen in the NBA -- at least in the short term.

Zaza Pachulia Confirms He's Close To Joining Deron Williams On Turkey's Besiktas

David Stern's pain is the Turkish league's gain.

Hawks center Zaza Pachulia confirmed to both USA Today and the AJC that he's close to inking a deal to join Deron Williams on Turkey's Besiktas squad.

The Atlanta Hawks reserve center told the AJC's Michael Cunningham that he has a verbal deal in place to head to the NATO nation to play some hoops, if all or part of the NBA season is a casualty to the lockout.

"They have interest, I have interest and we have talked about price," Pachulia told the AJC. "It’s not official now."

Under the terms of the proposed deal, Zaza would hang out in Turkey, which is adjacent to his home country of Georgia (the Republic, not to be confused with the state Atlanta is in), get some cash for playing ball and head back to the States if that pesky little NBA lockout thing is finally resolved.

Adjusting to Turkish-style play shouldn't take much at all for Pachulia, who spent six years as a teenager there playing ball. He also speaks the language and holds a Turkish passport.

Pachulia and Williams of the New Jersey Nets are not the only ones who may be headed overseas. USA Today reports that former Alabama star-turned-Toronto Raptor Sonny Weems is headed to Lithuania to play ball next year and former Philadelphia 76ers reserve Darius Songaila will spend next season overseas in Turkey.

Zaza Pachulia To Join Deron Williams On Turkey's Besiktas Team, According To Report

Deron Williams isn't the only one headed to Turkey. Atlanta Hawks center Zaza Pachulia is apparently going with him.

The New York Times reports that the Atlanta big from the Republic of Georgia has also inked a proposed deal to spend part of the NBA's "Fall of frustration" over in Europe. Just like Williams, a legit NBA superstar, Pachulia could potentially lace the sneakers for Turkey's Besiktas team, giving the club a formidable 1-2 punch of legitimate NBA players on their roster.

Assuming that Pachulia's contract is anything like Williams' proposed deal, the Atlanta big will leave his trendy Buckhead restaurant behind and play some Turkish league basketball starting Sept. 1. The deal should have an escape clause that would let Pachulia head back to the ATL if the NBA's owners and players come to their senses and settle this little lockout thingy, which may wipe out the entire 2011-12 season.

Besiktas opens its season on Sept. 27 and hopes to add a few more big-named NBA players on their roster if labor peace is not achieved in the NBA.