In an era when the game of basketball is dominated by point guards, Deron Williams is the cream of the crop.

At just 27 years old, Deron has already left a lasting impact on the game and the two NBA franchises he has called home. Rather than pass first or shoot first, Deron is the rare point guard hybrid that can gauge the game and give his team exactly what it needs in either department.

A two-time NBA All-Star and Olympic Gold Medalist, D-Will is a leader on and off the court. In just six seasons, Deron has already gained the respect from his peers afforded to a 15-year veteran. The Point of Hope Foundation, established by Deron and his wife Amy in 2007, holds several events per year that are attended and praised by his NBA brethren. Point of Hope, which is dedicated to improving the quality of life for children and families, is Deron's way of giving back to the communities that helped mold him into the man he is.

He is, as they say, the complete package and always ready for a challenge. The current one might be his biggest yet. Deron is using the NBA lockout as a chance to expand his horizons, joining the Turkish team Besiktas until the NBA's labor issues are resolved.

For D-Will, it's an opportunity to stay in game shape, and experience life and his career to the fullest.

FROM POINT TO POINT

Deron Michael Williams was born on June 26, 1984 in Parkersburg, West Virginia to Byron Williams and Denise Smith.

Raised mostly by his mother Denise, Deron moved to The Colony, a suburb outside of Dallas, Texas, at a young age. Denise kept two jobs to support Deron and his younger brother, Kendall Jones. 

She was the producer and distributor -- in effect, the family's point guard, which should have been no surprise to anyone, given her upbringing. Denise Smith, reared in West Virginia, was a standout point guard in her own right. She attended West Liberty State College, where she played basketball and volleyball.

"She's a good person. She loves me and my little brother a lot," Deron said on the night of the 2005 NBA Draft. "She's taken care of us. She's a pretty strong woman."

Not many things came easy for Deron in his childhood, but one thing that did was basketball. After all, it was in his DNA, with both of his parents having played the game in college. D-Will also played tennis and wrestled in his youth (winning championships at the latter), but he started playing hoops at a young age, and became part of an uprising of young basketball talent in the Dallas area at the turn of the century.

In 2001, his junior year, Deron helped guide The Colony High School to the Texas state semifinals. But it was teammate Bracey Wright, the team's shooting guard and the benefactor of hundreds of D-Will passes, who received the majority of attention from recruiters. Wright eventually attended Indiana University,

"It motivated me a lot to see the attention Bracey was getting," D-Will told the Dallas Morning News. "He deserved it, but at the same time, I wanted that same attention. It made me work harder. It made me want it a lot more."

The offers didn't pour in for Deron as they did for Wright. North Carolina and Kansas, two of the premier programs in the nation, had him on their radar, but only as a backup plan for Raymond Felton and Aaron Miles. Deron thought he was destined for Georgia Tech, but Jarrett Jack committed before Deron even took his visit.

He was ranked among the top 50 players in the nation as a senior, but wasn't selected for the McDonald's All-America game. Instead he watched from home as three Dallas area stars -- his teammate Wright, Chris Bosh of Dallas Lincoln and Daniel Horton, a point guard from Cedar Hill -- took the national stage.

"I always played good against the top point guards when I played them," Deron said. "But for some reason I never climbed up the rankings because I wasn't trying to score 25 points a game."

But when the Fighting Illini of Illinois came calling, they saw Deron as the perfect fit under head coach Bill Self. Deron was personally recruited by Self assistant Billy Gillespie, now the coach at Texas Tech.

Deron averaged 17.6 points, 8.4 assists, 6.1 rebounds and 2.6 steals per game as a senior. He finished his high school career at The Colony 90-8 with the one state semifinal appearance. He accepted the offer from Illinois, and headed off to Champaign ready to take the next step in his career.

"It all worked out for the best," Deron said.

CHAMPAIGN DREAMS

As his basketball career was getting ready to take him to college, Deron was becoming a man and there was no bigger moment in that process than when Amy gave birth to their daughter Denae in February of 2002.

Deron was just a freshman at Illinois at the time, but he grew up quickly. While he lived in the dorms at Illinois, Amy would often make the 800-mile trip to visit and make sure Denae got to see her dad.

"The first two years were hard, because I would always miss stuff with my daughter," he said. "First words. The first steps."

But both Amy and Deron knew how important it was for Deron to get an education and see how far basketball could take him as a career. Meanwhile, D-Will was excelling on the court and in the classroom.

He started 30 of Illinois' 32 games as a freshman and ranked second on the team and third in the Big Ten in assists per game at 4.53. He was also second on the team in both steals and assist-turnover ratio.

His successful start garnered Deron interest from USA Basketball and he was selected along with Illinois teammate Dee Brown to the 2003 USA Basketball Men's National Junior Team. The duo helped Team USA to a fifth place finish with just one loss in the junior national tournament in Greece.

The experience pushed Deron to come back to Illinois even better in his sophomore season. He was also under a new coach in Champaign. After Self left Illinois to take the head coaching job at Kansas, the Illini named Bruce Weber the head coach. With a new coach and a year in college under his belt, D-Will excelled a sophomore.

In his second season in Champaign, Deron led the Illini in scoring at 14 points per game, eighth in the conference. He also led the Big Ten in in-conference assists for the second straight season, becoming only the third player to do so in his first two seasons in the conference along with Magic Johnson and Bruce Douglas.

Illinois finished as the regular season Big Ten Champion and was runner-up in the Big Ten Tournament. Deron was named to the Big Ten All Tournament Team and was also a First Team All-Big Ten selection by both the coaches and the media.

In the first round of NCAA Tournament, Illinois pounded Murray State 72-53 behind eight points and eight assists from D-Will.

In the second round, Deron went off, pouring in 31 points to go along with seven assists as the Illini defeated the Cincinatti Bearcats to advance to the Sweet 16. The victory set up a Sweet 16 showdown with top-seeded Duke.

But that was where their tournament run would end. Still their was hope on the horizon for the Illini after a strong first season under Weber.

TAKING THE NATION BY STORM

Expectations were high on Deron and the Illini entering his junior year, so to give him a more steady home life, Amy and Denae moved to Champaign.

With his family in place, Deron was set for his best year yet. He was picked as the Preseason Big Ten Player of the Year and named to the prestigious watch lists for both the Wooden and Naismith awards. Playboy Magazine chose him as a Preseason All-American.

By December of 2004, after a dominant win over Wake Forest, the Illini were the number one team in the nation. They rolled through to the best start in school history and won 29 consecutive games before falling in number 30 to conference foe Ohio State.

At the center of it all was Deron, who played every game and was third on the team in scoring at 12.5 points per game and first in the conference in assists, at 6.8 per game (11th in the nation). He became the first player ever to lead the Big Ten Conference in in-conference assists each of his first three years in the Big Ten.

"Deron runs our team," Illinois coach Bruce Weber said. "His feel for the game is uncoachable. With his numbers, it's unbelievable that people are talking about him as national player of the year, because he doesn't have staggering numbers. He just makes us go. He's not caught up in points. He's caught up in getting the ball to the hot hand. If there's no hot hand, he knows when to take over."

"He's just one of the elite kids. He's a special breed who has a special feel for the game."

His honors in his junior season included being named a 2005 Consensus Second-Team All-American. He was also named to the Wooden Award All-America Team, a College Insider.com All-American, a NABC Second-Team All-American, a Sporting News Second-Team All-American, a CBS Sporsline.com Second-Team All-American, an Associated Press Third-Team All-American and a Sports Illustrated.com Third-Team All-American. For the second consecutive year he was a First-Team All-Big Ten selection by both league coaches and media.

"Deron Williams deserves every bit he gets," Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said during the 04-05 season. "[He's] so unselfish, so under control."

The Illini responded to their hiccup against Ohio State by winning the Big Ten Tournament, claiming their first conference tournament title under Weber to go along with their second regular season conference title.

At 32-1, Illinois entered the NCAA Tournament as a No. 1 seed and disposed quickly of Fairleigh Dickinson in the first round. They went on to defeat Nevada and Wisconsin-Milwaukee to advance to the Elite Eight, then ousted Arizona in an overtime thriller to advance to the Final Four.

Deron finished the Elite Eight win over Arizona win with 22 points and 10 assists. He hit five three-pointers in the win, including the game tying triple with 38 seconds to go in regulation. That shot sent the game to overtime, where he added two more treys to put Illinois ahead for good. He was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Chicago Regional.

"Deron Williams, the best guard in America, came through, made a lot of great plays," teammate Dee Brown said. "In the huddle we just said we aren't going to lose this game."

In the National Semifinal, Illinois took on Louisville and Deron turned his attention to the defensive end of the floor and Cardinals guard Francisco Garcia.

"I told Coach I wanted [to guard Garcia] right after the Arizona game. I always want the best player on the other team," Deron said. "I knew he was such a big part of their offense that stopping him was taking a big chunk out of their offense."

D-Will showed his defensive prowess, locking down Garcia and limiting him to just four points on two-of-10 shooting. Without that chunk of their offense, Louisville had nothing for the Illini and Illinois advanced to the National Championship game with a 72-57 win.

"[Deron's defense] wasn't a one-night thing," Illinois teammate Nick Smith told Sports Illustrated. "He did the same thing to Salim Stoudamire the last game. You're talking about two All-Americans, just completely shutting them down.

"He's a tough kid who takes it upon himself to lock up a team's best player and win the game by himself."

The Illini fell to North Carolina 75-70 in the National Championship game, ending the team's run one win short of history, but that wouldn't change how much the team, easily the best in school history, had accomplished.

"Our goal was to get to the Final Four, compete for the national championship," said Deron, who was selected to the Final Four All-Tournament team. "We did that."

Following the season, Deron chose to forego his senior year and declared for the NBA Draft. At his press conference, D-Will pledged that he would not forget all that the Illini accomplished in his three years there and thanked both his teammates and the coaching staff.

llinois finished Deron's three years in Champaign with a record of 88-16 (39-9 in Big Ten play). They won two regular season Big Ten titles, two Big Ten Tournament titles and participated in the NCAA Tournament all three seasons, advancing to the Second Round, Sweet 16, and National Championship game, respectively.

"We had a lot of great times playing here together. We won a lot of games, won some championships, and had an amazing run this year to end my career," Deron said. "[The coaches] put the ball in my hands and let me run the team, and I appreciate them having confidence in me and helping me improve my game the last two years."

FIRST POINT TAKEN

Deron entered the 2005 NBA Draft widely regarded as one of the top two point guards available. The other was Wake Forest's Chris Paul.

The Utah Jazz traded up to the third pick in the draft and had a decision to make: D-Will or Chris Paul? They chose D-Will. He would be following John Stockton, but the Jazz made it clear from the outset that he was not chosen to replace Stockton. He was chosen to be Deron Williams.

"When we've had good point play we've played pretty well," Sloan said. "We don't expect him to be John Stockton. We expect him to be who he is and have the opportunity to do what we think he can do."

From the jump, D-Will knew exactly what he needed to do.

"It doesn't bother me at all," he said of the higher expectations at the point guard position in Utah.

"John Stockton is who he is. They will not forget about him in Salt Lake City or Utah. I'm just trying to be me."

Deron would not be expected to assume the starting point guard job immediately either. He started the season as a reserve as Sloan offered a chance for him to get his feet wet.

He made his debut on November 2nd, 2005 during the Jazz' season opener against the Mavericks and started with a bang. After entering late in the first quarter, Deron scored 18 points, including a 61-foot three as time expired in the third quarter. Sloan rewarded him by allowing him to play the entire fourth quarter and he rewarded that trust by leading the Jazz to a come-from-behind win.

Deron went on to excel in the reserve role over the first eight games of the season, averaging 12.3 points and 3.8 assists per game in just 25.4 minutes per game. On November 15th in Sacramento, Deron made his first start of the season. He started the next 19 games for the Jazz and 47 in total over the course of his rookie season. He bided his time between starting and coming off the bench and even filled in for the Jazz at shooting guard when injuries struck.

Thanks in large part to Deron, the Jazz finished 41-41, a 15-game improvement over the year prior. D-Will finished the season averaging 10.8 points and 4.5 assists per game in his first season. He made the NBA All-Rookie First Team and was runner up for the Rookie of the Year. He also left a lasting impression on his peers.

"He's a great competitor and is tough," Steve Nash said of D-Will. "He's more than ready to play at this level."

LEADING THE JAZZ

With that first year under his belt and respect already earned throughout the league, Deron gained confidence that allowed him excel in year two in a starting role for the Jazz.

"I had a productive summer, worked hard, got in the best shape of my life," Deron told the Dallas Morning News. "My confidence level is definitely 10 times higher than it was last year. I'm out there playing free, not worrying about if I make a mistake, I might have to come out or this or that. I can just go out there and play."

The Jazz brought in veteran point guard Derek Fisher to ease the transition, but D-Will started each 80 of the games he played in during the 2006-2007 campaign. He rewarded Utah's commitment to him with a breakout season, averaging 9.3 assists per game, second in the NBA.  He also managed 16.2 points per game, third on the team. 

The breakout pushed Utah to a franchise-best 12-1 start. They finished ten games better than his rookie year, at 51-31, and Deron's excellence led the Jazz to the Northwest title, breaking a three-year playoff drought in Utah.

The Jazz began the playoffs with two straight losses to the Houston Rockets, but rebounded to win four of the next five games and take the series in seven. D-Will finished the series averaging 16.3 points and 8.4 assists per game. He dominated the final game of the series, playing 45 of the 48 minutes and posting 20 points on 7-of-13 from the field along with 14 assists.

The star-making performance forced TNT's Charles Barkley to proclaim: "Deron Williams is going to be a household name."

As the level rose in the 2007 playoffs, so did Deron's game. The Jazz matched up with the Golden State Warriors in the Conference Semifinals and D-Will left his mark on the series from the get-go with 31 points on 11-of-21 from the field in Game 1. He added eight assists as the Jazz took a 1-0 lead with a 116-112 win.

Behind Deron's electric play, Utah advanced to the Western Conference Finals with ease, dispatching Golden State in five. Deron finished the series with 16.8 points and 9.6 assists per game.

"As a point guard, you have to be sort of a silent assassin in a lot of ways," former Dallas Mavericks point guard Derek Harper told the Dallas Morning News regarding Deron during the 2007 playoff run. "You have to have that kind of attitude. That's his attitude. It's very deceiving from the standpoint that he looks almost like he's shy and quiet, but he has a killer instinct inside of him."

The Jazz matched up with the eventual NBA champion San Antonio Spurs in the West Finals, where they fell in five. But the loss wasn't from a lack of effort from D-Will. He raised his game again, reaching an elite level few point guards ever touch.

For the five game series, Deron averaged 25.8 points and 7.8 assists and 2.4 steals per game. In Utah's only win of the series, he scored 31 points, passed out eight assists and recorded five steals. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich left impressed by the second-year guard.

"He's already become, I think, one of the best in the league," Popovich said. "He gets more and more comfortable every month or so. He's going to be one of the top point guards we've had for a long time."

REDEMPTION STORY

Following his second year in the league, Deron was approached by USA Basketball to be a member of Team USA for the FIBA Americas Olympic Qualifying Tournament that summer.

It was no surprise that Deron was high on Team USA's list, after all, he was a member of the USA Basketball feeder program going back to his days at Illinois.

Team USA was scuffling at the time, having just finished third at both the 2004 Olympics and 2006 FIBA World Championships, so USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo began assembling a new Dream Team and made sure Deron was a part of the plan.

"Deron Williams is a big part of USA Basketball's future," Colangelo said. "I'm a big Williams fan.  I think he's a terrific player, and a great understudy with Jason Kidd."

D-Will, Kidd and Chauncey Billups were the team's three point guards for FIBA Americas. The roster also included NBA stars LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard and Carmelo Anthony.

Team USA easily rolled through the FIBA Americas in 2007, winning each of their 10 games by at least 15 points. Deron ranked second on the team in assists per game with 4.6. His best game came against Uruguay, when he scored 14 points and dished out a team-high six assists in a 118-79 USA win.

The following summer, after playing all 82 games with the Jazz and averaging 10.5 assists and 18.8 points per game to lead Utah back to the playoffs with a 54-win season, Deron once again went to camp with Team USA in Las Vegas. After competing with the best of the best that USA Basketball had to offer, D-Will was one of 12 men selected to represent the United States at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

Chris Paul replaced Billups on the 2008 team, giving Team USA one of the best point guard trios in history with Deron, Paul and Jason Kidd.

It wasn't as easy as the FIBA Americas, but with the help of their point guard trio, Team USA blazed through Olympic pool play with an average margin of victory of 28 points. Aptly named "The Redeem Team" they entered the quarterfinals as they heavy favorite to win Team USA's first gold since the 2000 Olympics.

Behind 10 points by D-Will, Team USA defeated Australia 116-85 in the quarterfinals. In the semis, they rolled to a 101-81 win over Argentina, setting up an Olympic final showdown with Spain. It was the toughest game they'd played in two years together, but Team USA pulled through with a 118-107 victory over Spain to capture the gold medal. It was a one of a kind moment for Deron.

"It's been a great experience for me, a lifetime experience. Something I'm going to cherish the rest of my life," he said. "It makes it so much sweeter now that I have the gold medal around my neck. I have stories to tell my kids. It's kind of surreal right now to think that I'm an Olympic champion."

D-Will finished the tournament with an average of eight points, 2.8 assists and just over 19 minutes per game. He said it was a special moment, standing on the Olympic podium, receiving his medal and hearing the National Anthem playing.

"[It's] No. 1 on my list. I don't have an NBA championship; I don't have a college championship. But even if I did I'd still think the same," he said. "This is for your country, it's not for your team it's for your whole country, for a whole nation of people back home supporting us. For our troops overseas fighting for us. This is for everybody."

Following his experience with Team USA, D-Will pushed right into the 2008-2009 season with the Jazz and put up the best numbers of his career to date. He averaged 19.4 points and 10.7 assists per game during the season and pushed Utah into the playoffs for a third straight season.

"With Deron, he's got the total package," Jason Kidd told DIME Magazine. "He plays on the offensive and defensive side. He loves to be involved in the big plays: Making the right pass, making the game-winner. He doesn't mind that stage, so he definitely is one of the best at what he does."

POINT OF HOPE

As Deron's on-court career was taking off, he was doing everything he could off the court to make sure that his stardom was being used to do good in the community.

"This is far more rewarding than just playing basketball," Amy said. "The best part of being who he is, is the impact and difference he can make." 

In 2007, Deron and Amy established The Point of Hope Foundation with a goal to help improve the quality of life for families and children. In that first year, Point of Hope hosted the inaugural Deron Williams Celebrity Golf Classic to aid the Huntsman Cancer Institute and the Inaugural Point of Hope Christmas Dinner for single mothers in Salt Lake City and their children.

"It's a great cause, something that's close to me because my mom was a single mom," D-Will said. "And I knew how difficult it was around Christmastime for her to provide for me and my little brother and still help us have a good Christmas. That's what this is about." 

By 2008, the Celebrity Golf Classic was drawing in many of Deron's peers around the league and the Point of Hope Christmas Dinner was going strong. In addition, Point of Hope joined the Utah Jazz to provide more than 3,000 Thanksgiving meals for Salt Lake's homeless and low-income families.

D-Will also expanded his work beyond Salt Lake City by hosting the inaugural Deron Williams Illini Hoop Legends Charity Event in Chicago.

In 2009, while continuing the other events he had established, Deron teamed with Kyle Korver to establish the Dodge Barrage Tournament, a charity dodgeball tournament in Salt Lake City.

"It's just fun," Deron said. "I don't know why we picked dodgeball but it's something fun and be a little different. It's something that more people can afford and another way for us to raise money to help others in need. It's one of my favorite events."

Being an active member of the community is as important to Deron as any thing he does in his career on the basketball court. Through his myriad of Point of Hope events, D-Will is leaving a lasting impact on the community and providing a positive influence for those who consider him a role model.

"It's something I love to do. I love to give back to the community," he said. "These fans are always so supportive. Half of these kids are big fans of mine and fans of the Jazz, so it was good to…see the smile on their faces." 

ALL STAR AT HOME

For the first four seasons of his career, Deron had established himself as one of the league's premier point guards.

Following his rookie year, D-Will ranked in the top three in the league in assists for each of his next three seasons. But it wasn't until year five, the 2009-2010 season, that D-Will was finally recognized as an NBA All-Star.

Kobe Bryant wondered aloud what took so long.

"It really makes no sense.It shouldn't be (his first time). It makes no sense. He should have been in for a while," Bryant said.

"He's one of the two best point guards in the world, period."

But Deron believes that not being selected for those first four seasons served a positive purpose.

"I think being overlooked and overshadowed helped me," he said during All-Star Weekend. "It made me work harder. It made me play harder and get better."



It was only fitting, however, that Deron's first All-Star appearance would come in his hometown of Dallas, Texas at the brand new, larger than life Cowboys Stadium. Entering the 2010 All-Star game, D-Will was on pace for another stellar season, averaging 18.6 points and 9.8 assists per game.

"To play at home in front of all my friends and family was great," he said. "This (playing an All-Star in his hometown area) is a once-in-a-lifetime thing. It's a dream come true. It's something I've always wanted, and it's finally here.

"Hopefully I can move forward, and hopefully it's the first of many."

Deron finished his first All-Star game with 14 points, six assists and four steals, playing with the same intensity that makes him on the of the game's best at the point.

"I was having a lot of fun out there, really going after it,'' he said. "Some of these guys had been in this game five or six times, so they may approach it differently. I was in my first, playing hard, being home in front of my family and friends.

"This is what it's supposed to be about — putting on a show, having fun out there. It's a great first All-Star Game for me."

D-Will finished the 2009-2010 season in true All-Star form, averaging 11.6 assists and 18.7 points per game to lead the Jazz to a fourth playoff appearance in his five years in Utah. Once the Jazz reached the postseason, Deron turned it up a notch in their first round series against the Denver Nuggets.

He averaged 25.8 points and 11.3 assists per game as the Jazz ousted Denver in six games. The Jazz moved on to the Western Conference Semifinals and met with the eventual NBA Champion Los Angeles Lakers. D-Will did all he could, posting 22 points and nine assists per game, but the Jazz were knocked out in four.

With Carlos Boozer having departed the Jazz for Chicago via free agency, Deron picked up more of the scoring load in his sixth season in Utah. He earned his second straight All-Star nod by averaging a career-high 21.4 points per game in the first half of the season.

"The sky is the limit for him," Jason Kidd said. "He gets better each year. The biggest thing for him is trying to help his team win the championship, and that's easier said than done. Sometimes you just have to be patient. I think if he keeps working on his game, he's going to be the best."

But just three days after his second consecutive All-Star appearance, Deron's tenure in Utah came to an end.

ON TO NEW JERSEY

On February 23, 2011, the Jazz sent Deron to New Jersey in a multi-player trade. The move caught Deron off guard, but he was welcomed to his new home in New Jersey with open arms.

''Everything happens for a reason; I take everything in stride," Deron said after the trade. ''I had a great five and a half years in Salt Lake. The fans have always been great for me. I'm going to miss them."

For the Nets, the move was a clear sign that they were working to compete with the New York Knicks for supremacy in the New York market while piecing together a young team that should be playoff competitive for years to come.

'I'm excited because Deron Williams I feel is the best point guard in the NBA," Nets GM Billy King told the New York Times ''And when you want to try to win, you need a point guard and a center. I think we have two of the best."

Deron sees a bright future in New Jersey as long as the Nets continue to bring in the pieces to become a playoff contender again.

"I like to win. When I looked, (the Nets) weren't in the playoff picture. We were like nine games back. In Utah, we were in the eighth position. I was looking forward to a strong push," he said. "I'm not generally (a patient person), but I understand it's different this year. It's a young team, I talked to Coach Johnson and he told me not to get frustrated and I'm not frustrated."

Nets owner Mikhail Prohorov believes Deron is a superstar and informed D-Will that he plans to build a successful Nets franchise around him.

"That gets you excited," Williams said. "When your owner said he's going to spend the money and put people around you, that's definitely appealing.

"The future is bright here and that's what everybody is looking forward to so there's no reason to (push it)."

Deron spent most of the second half of the 2010-2011 season rehabbing a wrist injury suffered in Utah, but he did play in 12 games for New Jersey, showing what he is capable with 12.8 assists and 15 points per game.

TRENDSETTING ABROAD

Following the 2010-2011 season with an NBA lockout in full effect, Deron received an offer he could not refuse to set a trend among pro basketball players and head abroad for a new opportunity.

On July 15th, D-Will signed a contract with Turkish team Besiktas to play in Turkey during the lockout. The contract includes an out clause that allows Deron to return to the United States immediately upon the resolution of the lockout. D-Will said he'd been thinking about going overseas for the last two years as a lockout loomed.

"It will just be a great experience," he told ESPN's Chris Broussard. "How often am I going to get this chance to go live abroad in a great city and experience some things. My family is going to be there with me, so it's not like I'm going to be there by myself. I take it as an adventure. It's a way to stay in shape and play basketball."

Deron Williams is at the top of a point guard driven league in the NBA, a difference maker in the community, a trendsetter in taking the game overseas, an Olympic champion and a two-time NBA All-Star. Already one of the best of his generation, at 27 years of age, Deron is only just getting started.

"He will be the king of the world," Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov said. "The first really global basketball player."