Williams trying out with Turkish team

While their former teammates are returning from Europe, Kent Williams and Jermaine Dearman are just beginning their jaunts across the pond.

Dearman signed Aug. 10 with German team EnBW Ludwigsburg, and Williams is leaving Tuesday for Turkey.

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Dearman’s new coach, Bruno Soce of Croatia, said in a press release that he had been scouting the Indianapolis native for some time and said he did not hesitate to sign Dearman when the opportunity arose. Soce said Dearman’s offense, defense and rebounding will greatly aid the team, which finished 12th of 14 teams in the German Premier League last season with an 18-34 record.

Dearman, who signed a one-year deal with an option for a second year, is expected to fill Ludwigsburg’s vacant center position.

“Hopefully he can establish himself and this can be a stepping stone for him to get up to a higher level in Italy or one of the better countries, but Germany’s a good league,” SIU head coach Matt Painter said. “I’m happy for him and hopefully he can have a long career over there.”

While the ink has already dried on Dearman’s contract, Williams is set to begin a weeklong tryout with Darussafaka in Istanbul, Turkey.

“As of right now, I’m probably playing there,” Williams said. “I could either change my mind or they could cut me. While I’m there, if I think something better pops up, then I’ll take that.”

Playing overseas is not a new experience for Williams, who toured Poland during the summer of 2002 as a member of the Athletes in Action squad. While Williams isn’t overly excited at the prospect of living in Turkey, he’s willing to try it.

“It doesn’t sound too appealing when you’re talking about Turkey, but I probably won’t know what it’s like until I get over there,” Williams said. “I’ve never been in that area, so I have no idea what the coaches are like, what the team’s like, so it’s basically just getting over there, feeling it out for a week and seeing if that’s the right spot for me.”

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Reporter Ethan Erickson can be reached at [email protected]