Hornets Player Grades: Mark Williams

The underrated big was unfortunately shortchanged by injury this season.

Dec 8, 2023; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Charlotte Hornets center Mark Williams (5) during pregame warm ups against the Toronto Raptors at the Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports / Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports

The second-year Charlotte center, who became a Hornet as the No. 15 pick in the 2022 NBA draft from Duke, spent his rookie year in 2022-23 proving his talents to (now former) Charlotte head coach Steve Clifford and staff, not to mention to fans. He entered this season full of promise and potential after earning a starting role.

In the end, Williams averaged 9 points and 7.1 rebounds per game over 43 games in 2022-23. And his on-the-ball defense and explosive dunks gave Hornets fans a whole new reason to cheer.

But this season, things were different. Williams was hit with an on-court injury just before Christmas, at first it appeared to be a short term issue but it gradually involved into a serious injury which prevented him playing again the remainder of the season. Still, he finished 2023-24, only 19 games played, with an average of 12.7 points alongside 9.7 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 1.1 blocks — a glimpse of why Williams is an underrated center in the NBA.

Glass Half Full

Williams did a lot well on the court this season despite the limited amount of games that he played. Alongside interior scoring, his offensive rebounding also saw an uptick from last season to this one, with Williams landing in the top 4 percent (96th percentile) of offensive rebounders in the league for 2023-24. His points per shot attempt (PSA) grew from 131.4 last season to 133.7, while playing with a higher offensive usage.

And Williams undoubtedly makes an impact when he's on the floor. One particularly impressive stat from this season shows that he had the best On/Off (+/-) numbers on the entire Hornets squad at +10.1, meaning that Williams made the biggest difference out of any other Hornet in uniform when he was on the court versus off. That's exactly the kind of player Charlotte needs as they attempt to come back next year from another disappointing season (with a new coach in tow).

Glass Half Empty

Of course, there are still some areas that Williams could work on. For example, evincing a slide in rim protection, the percentage of shots he blocked (per 100 attempts) fell from 2.7 percent in 2022-23 — then among the top 20 percent of shot blockers in the NBA — to 1.9 percent in 2023-24, according to advanced stats from Cleaning The Glass. And there are still those pesky what-ifs around Williams for what the year initially promised.

Ideally, this season should've seen Williams build on his rookie momentum and establish himself as a cornerstone for the Hornets' future. The disappointment of what could have been still lingers, but it also sets the stage for his comeback. That said, keep an eye on possible future roster additions in Charlotte — if the Hornets go with UConn's Donovan Clingan for their No. 6 pick this year at the 2024 NBA Draft, Williams could have some competition for playing time in 2024-25.

Best Moment of the Season

Williams gave vivid signs that he was coming into his own this season. In one impressive instance, he recorded his first-ever 20-20 game on Nov. 10, in a win over the Washington Wizards, finishing with 21 points and 24 rebounds. It was the best night of Williams' NBA career so far, making him the second youngest player in Hornets franchise history to log a 20-20 game,. It was the same night Williams set a franchise record with 15 offensive rebounds.

MARK WILLIAMS WITH THE DAGGER DUNK! 🗡️

ERIC COLLINS WITH THE DAGGER CALL! 🗡️@hornets | #LetsFly35 pic.twitter.com/1P2bNQJC9m

— Bally Sports: Hornets (@HornetsOnBally) November 11, 2023

Worst Moment of the Season

What else could be the worst moment? For Williams this season, it has to be his injury that occurred back in November. Making it especially grueling for fans was the subsequent indication that he may have been able to return this year, though that ended up being nothing but a pipe dream. We're sure it wasn't easy for Williams to go down like that for the year.

Overall Grade - B

It's hard to judge a player's season with just 19 games, but Mark Williams remains impressive — whether he's played 19 or 43 or more. And looking back over his short career so far, it seems we have a lot left to see from the endearing 7-foot big in Queen City. After all, fans wanted Williams to bring some new muscle to the LaMelo Ball-led crew. Now, after a thwarted sophomore season for Williams, maybe he can more fully deliver on all that promise and potential — he has it in spades.