Hornets Player Grades: Grant Williams

Evaluating Grant Williams' first 29 games in the purple and teal.

Apr 7, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Charlotte Hornets forward Grant Williams (2) runs back against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Spectrum Center. / Scott Kinser-USA TODAY Sports

Charlotte native Grant Williams made a huge impact on his hometown team despite playing in just 29 games on a team that had no shot of making the playoffs.

Glass Half Full

Due to injuries, Williams filled a bigger role than probably expected, but he remained efficient on both ends of the floor. He averaged 13.9 points per game which is considered one of the best offensive stretches of his career, shooting the ball at a 50% clip and 37% from three-point range. The Hornets won't need him to be some prolific scorer or even a third or fourth option, for that matter. However, he provides more of an offensive boost from the bench spot than what Steve Clifford was rotating onto the floor prior to the trade.

The biggest thing Williams brings to the organization is a passion and desire to win. He's a natural leader, a guy that doesn't mind telling it how it is and getting onto his teammates. That's something that has severely lacked in previous years with this young bunch.

Glass Half Empty

Although Williams plays with extreme toughness and physicality, he's still undersized for a four. Considering we haven't been able to speak much with GM Jeff Peterson since his arrival and have yet to speak with new head coach Charles Lee, it's hard to draw up what their plan is for the bench. Williams will one hundred percent be a part of what the Hornets are trying to do here as he is under contract through 2026-27. It's more of how does Charlotte go about making up for his lack of size? Can he fit with what they want to do defensively? Or does he become a pretty expensive bench guy that only gets 20 minutes a night?

Best Moment of the Season

In his first game playing against the Boston Celtics, Williams didn't do so hot. He only had two points, three rebounds, and two assists in just 18 minutes of action for the Mavs. He did, however, take advantage of his second chance with the Hornets. In Charlotte's 118-104 loss on April 1st, Williams went for 23 points and seven rebounds, shooting an efficient 10/16 from the floor.

Worst Moment of the Season

It was a small sample size for Williams in Charlotte, so I'm not going to go with anything on the court for Williams' worst moment. Instead, it has to do more with luck. Of course, he's happy to be back home and playing in front of his friends and family here in Charlotte but to see the Celtics and Mavericks, the other two teams he's played for reach the NBA Finals, has to be painful.

The two teams that traded Grant Williams in the past 12 months have now made the @NBA Finals 😅

There’s no greater pain. pic.twitter.com/rSPmJHDuWR

— Basketball Forever (@bballforever_) June 1, 2024

Overall Grade: B+

It's way too early to tell how Williams will fit in Charlotte, especially with the front office and coaching changes but from a leadership and defensive perspective, you know what you're going to get. He can be the glue guy for this team moving forward and take care of all the dirty work while LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller and co. can take care of the pretty stuff aka scoring.