Derrick Williams signs with Maccabi Tel Aviv

Former Arizona Wildcats star Derrick Williams has signed with Maccabi Tel Aviv of the Euroleague and Israeli Basketball Premier League.

This will be Williams’ fourth straight season playing in the Euroleague. He joins Maccabi after one season with Valencia of the Spanish Liga ACB, where he averaged 9.0 points and 3.1 rebounds.

Williams’ previous Euroleague experience came in one-year stints with Bayern Munich (Germany) and Fenerbahçe (Turkey).

“Shalom! I am so excited to join Maccabi Tel Aviv and to be a part of this incredible organization”, Williams said in a statement. “I’m looking forward to playing in front of the passionate fans in Tel Aviv and helping the team compete for Israeli and EuroLeague championships. Let’s get to work.”

Williams was selected second overall in the 2011 NBA Draft by the Minnesota Timberwolves and spent parts of nine seasons in the Association.

Though the former All-American didn’t live up to his NBA potential, he’s developed quite a career on the European circuit and gives Maccabi plenty of size with his 6-foot-8, 240 lb frame.

“We are very happy to have Derrick Williams with us because he will give us a lot of power in the forward position”, Maccabi coach Giannis Sfairopoulos said. “We are very pleased that we have signed another quality player, a player who knows the Euroleague and will fight with us to achieve our goals. Welcome to the Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv family, Derrick.”