Grant Williams: Trade to Mavs 'Empowers' His Role
Heading into the offseason, the Dallas Mavericks made it a priority to upgrade their defense, which was at the very bottom of the league last season.
With that focus came targeting Boston Celtics restricted free agent Grant Williams, who came to Dallas on a four-year, $54 million contract via sign-and-trade. He expects to step in right away and be the best defender on the roster.
On Friday’s episode of The Old Man & The Three with JJ Redick & Tommy Alter, Williams spoke on joining the Mavericks and what his ideal role would be on both ends of the floor.
“In a perfect world, in a role that I star in, it looks like being a versatile defender on the defensive end guarding the best player, high impact energy guy but also being a part of the offense and being utilized well,” Williams said.
In 79 games last season, Williams averaged career-high numbers across the board with 8.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.7 assists while shooting 39.5 percent from 3-point range in 26 minutes per game. He had eight games where he scored at least 15 points, and his best performance came in a two-point win over the Toronto Raptors in January when he put up 25 points while shooting 7-13 from the field and 4-6 from deep.
Instead of just being known as a spot-up 3-point shooter on offense, Williams is confident in his ability as a playmaker in pick-and-roll actions and his entire offensive skillset overall, especially since he'll now be paired up with the likes of Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving.
“The way I look at it is the best opportunity that I’ll ever be in as of right now will be the you’re involved on the offensive end and you’re also challenged on the defensive end,” Williams said.
And Williams is right: through his first four years in Boston, his role was restricted as a one-dimensional player. He was a spot-up 3-point shooter on the offensive end, but when given the opportunity, as he mentioned, he showed many flashes as an efficient screener and playmaker in dribble handoffs.
With his role on offense being minimized in Boston, Williams feels he’ll be ‘more empowered’ to grow and utilize every part of his game in Dallas.
“I feel like I’ll be a little bit more empowered to play a little bit more of my game in Dallas, whether that’s screening Luka and getting him in an action in the roll and he’s hitting me in the pocket or it’s picking and popping and knocking down shots,” Williams said.
The 'more empowered' the player, the better, as it will give Williams, or any other Maverick for that matter, the confidence and desire to play hard on both ends of the floor night in and night out.
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