Following a four-year stint with the Boston Celtics, forward Grant Williams joined the Dallas Mavericks last offseason. Despite a solid start with the team, Williams fell out of favor in Dallas’ lineup. Ultimately, the Mavericks traded him to the Charlotte Hornets at the 2024 NBA Trade Deadline. On Tuesday, before his revenge game against the Mavericks, the Tennessee alum talked about his trade from the team. Williams made it clear he “knew it was coming” and that “there’s no hard feelings” on his end:
“I knew it was coming,” Williams said. “We communicated well throughout the process. (Mavs general manager) Nico (Harrison), I respect those guys a lot.
“There’s no hard feelings on my end, or I think on their end as well. I think they’ve just moved on.”
“No hard feelings on my end or, I think, their end,” Grant Williams told us this morning. And here you go, Williams and the guy who traded him. Williams also told us this morning: “We communicated well throughout the process. Nico, I respect those guys a lot from an honesty… pic.twitter.com/h2GhaeQwIW
— Brad Townsend (@townbrad) April 9, 2024
Grant Williams Opens Up About Trade From the Dallas Mavericks
Grant Williams Has Looked Impressive With the Hornets
In his short time with the Hornet so far, Williams has looked much better than he did for most of his Mavericks tenure. Williams has played in 27 games for Charlotte, starting eight of them. In those games, he is averaging 13.9 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game. Furthermore, Williams is shooting 50% from the field and 37.3% from the three-point line. A few games after the trade, then Hornets head coach Steve Clifford spoke highly of the forward’s impact:
Steve Clifford on Grant Williams defensive impact “Great, really, really good. He’s a great communicator, super bright. He also gives you versatility you can switch a lot more, I would also say he’s our most physical player. We’ve been better rebounding when he’s in the game.
Additionally, Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd recently talked about Williams’ play in Charlotte:
Grant’s doing an incredible job here when you look at playing the five or playing whatever position they’ve asked him to play. He’s shooting the ball, he’s making decisions, he’s posting up and he’s guarding the five at the other end, so I think he’s done an incredible job since the trade.
Williams has played well with the Hornets so far, and it may be more than a short-term run. The former Celtics forward is under contract through the 2026-27 season. By that point, he will be just 28 years old.
The Former Mavericks Forward Thinks Highly of His Former Team
The Texas native may not have worked out in Dallas, but it appears he still has high hopes for the team. Williams has publicly said the Mavericks “can be a championship contender” this season:
“Trust me, that team can be a championship contender,” Williams said. “I think it’s all about depending on the [playoff] matchup. That’s the only thing that would be concerning.”
Currently, the Mavericks are 48-30 and are 9-1 in their last 10 games. They own the No. 5 seed, but they can jump up to the No. 4 seed with less than a week remaining.
