Mark Williams is a Bigger Piece to the Hornets' Puzzle Than Most Think

If the Charlotte big man can stay healthy, the Hornets are a completely different team in 2024-25.

Sam Sharpe-USA TODAY Sports

The duo of LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller is what has everyone in Charlotte excited about the Hornets' future, but center Mark Williams should not be forgotten about. I could make the argument that his presence and impact are as equally important.

How is that possible?

Because having an athletic big who can not only score, but can protect the rim is a luxury. Not every team in the NBA has that. It's not a fixture in the league anymore because there's just quite frankly not many bigs that can be a high level two-way player. Williams has a long way to go before establishing himself as such, but we've seen the flashes of that potential at the tail end of his rookie year and then early on last season before back issues popped up.

Charlotte struggled mightily inside last year, allowing 52.5 points in the paint and got crushed on the glass just about every night, finishing dead last in rebounds per game (47.3). Having Williams available completely changes the dynamic of how competitive the Hornets can be in both areas of the game. First-year head coach Charles Lee realizes that and discussed the importance of getting the big man back to full strength.

“I’m really hopeful first and foremost that we can get him to a place where he’s healthy, can play more games, can get some more reps and we can really see him be the Mark Williams that we know," Lee said. "When I was in Boston he destroyed us when we played here in Charlotte. That’s the type of dominating force that we want on both ends of the court. Hopefully defensively we can unleash him a little bit more to be that rim protector and then rebound at a high level. Offensively, I think he has a great ability to do a lot of different things in terms of being a pick-and-roll screener with as much pace as we want to play with and being able to finish in the paint too is going to be a trademark of his. Dominate the paint is going to be his middle name.”

When you have guards like Ball and Miller who can push the tempo, you need to have a center who can run the floor well and not only get in position to potentially score, but rebound a missed shot and keep things alive. Williams can do exactly that.

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