Derrick Williams, the second overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft, hasn’t been in the league since he signed a 10-day contract with the Lakers in March 2018. However, the veteran forward continues to play professional basketball at age 35.

As Dario Skerletic of Sportando relays, Williams has signed with the Seoul Samsung Thunders in South Korea, according to a social media announcement from the team (Instagram link). It will be Williams’ second straight season in Korea after he spent the 2025/26 campaign with Suwon KT Sonicboom.

Drafted one spot after Kyrie Irving 15 years ago, Williams appeared in 428 NBA regular season games for six teams from 2011-18, averaging 8.9 points and 4.0 rebounds in 20.7 minutes per contest. The former Arizona Wildcat has since played in China, Germany, Turkey, Spain, Israel, Greece, and Puerto Rico in addition to Korea.

Here are a few more updates on former NBA players from non-NBA basketball leagues:

• Big man Marquese Chriss, the eighth overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft, will spend a third straight year in the Chinese Basketball Association, making the move to the Liaoning Flying Leopards following two years with the Shandong Hi-Speed Kirin (Instagram link; hat tip to Sportando). Chriss, 29, made 292 NBA regular season appearances for five teams from 2016-22 and then spent some time in the G League before continuing his career overseas.
• Like Chriss, 2017 first-round pick Harry Giles is returning to the CBA for a third consecutive season. Giles, the former Duke standout who played for Sacramento and three other NBA teams, played for the Shanxi Loongs in 2024/25 and the Jiangsu Dragons in ’25/26 and is now joining the Beijing Royal Fighters for the upcoming season (Instagram link).
• Valencia Basket has reached a deal with veteran guard Armoni Brooks, the Spanish team announced in a press release. We noted over the weekend that Brooks was expected to part ways with ASVEL due to the French club’s financial troubles. The 28-year-old out of Houston played for three NBA teams from 2020-24 and has been in Europe since 2024, spending the past two seasons with Olimpia Milano.