The Journal Times Online - Racine, Wisconsin

GERY WOELFEL

ST. FRANCIS -- For professional athletes, it's all about the money, right?

Well, maybe not for all of them.

Take Ersan Ilyasova, the Milwaukee Bucks' intriguing young forward.

Ilyasova played last season for Regal FC Barcelona in the Spanish League, and he played quite well.

His impressive play and his appealing upside made the 6-foot-9 Ilyasova an attractive free-agent prospect over the summer.

The Bucks were just one of several options for him, and they were certainly weren't the best one -- at least from a financial standpoint.

According to Ilyasova, FC Barcelona made a serious pitch to retain him, offering a lucrative, five-year offer.

Ilyasova said he also got a sweet offer from Olympiakos, the Athens-based powerhouse. Olympakos had a four-year, guaranteed contract on the table for him.

Ilyasova wouldn't disclose the monetary numbers for the FC Barcelona or Olympiakos offers, but conceded it was "more money than the Bucks.''

The Bucks signed Ilyasova to a three-year, $7 million deal.

Ilyasova wouldn't have signed on the dotted line with the Bucks if Tolga Tugsavul, Ilyasova's agent, had his druthers.

"He wanted me to stay in Europe,'' Ilyasova said.

Ilyasova, who was born in Eskisehir, Turkey, certainly wouldn't have had an issue if he continued plying his craft in Europe.

But Ilyasova, a fiercely independent individual, wasn't about to let his agent sway his opinion, much less determine his future.

"The agent is to bring the offers,'' Ilyasova said, "but the decision is me.''

Ilyasova was almost obsessed about returning to the NBA and proving, especially to himself, that he could compete at the highest level of the game.

Ilyasova attempted to do that after the Bucks chose him in the second round of the 2005 NBA draft, but the thin-as-a-rail 19-year-old wasn't close to being ready.

The Bucks assigned him to the NBA's minor league -- the Development League -- with the Tulsa 66ers. The following season Ilyasova showed enough growth that he stuck with the Bucks. He played in 66 games and even started 14.

Bucks officials were delighted with his progress and expected him to play a prominent role in the years to come.

But while attending the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, then Bucks general manager Larry Harris was stunned to learn that Ilyasova was returning to Europe.

Ilyasova, 22, is reluctant to explain why he left the Bucks, but he isn't hesitant about why he's come back.

"It's more of a challenge,'' Ilyasova said. "When I was here the first time, I was just 19.

"A lot of things have changed since then. I'm more experienced. I had more playing time.

"I'm happy to be here.''

But not as happy as his wife, Julia. She grew up in Milwaukee and felt a sense of security being around her parents.

There had been rumblings that Julia prodded Ersan toward signing with the Bucks this summer, but Ersan insists her opinion didn't influence his.

"She is very excited to be here again,'' Ilyasova said. "It's more easy for her here.

"(But) it wasn't why I came here. ... I see myself as an NBA player.''

Ilyasova probably sees himself as eventually being a big-time NBA player, although he isn't about to publicly make that proclamation.

For now, he wants to establish himself as a key contributor for the Bucks. He is in a heated battle for one of the two starting forward spots and believes, unlike his last stint with the team, he is infinitely more prepared to start.

"Why not?'' Ilyasova responds when asked if he could earn a starter's role. "Everybody has an even chance here.''

If he doesn't start, Ilyasova said he's not going to be devastated. It's not about him, he says, it's about the team.

"First of all, my goal is playing on a winning team,'' Ilyasova said. "I want to help this team win. Our goal is to be in the playoffs.''

Where he could make some extra cash and recoup a portion of the money he lost by not signing with either FC Barcelona or Olympiakos.

"It was a huge decision I make to come back to the NBA,'' Ilyasova said about passing on the bucks for the Bucks. "I'm happy with my decision. It's not about the money.''