The Dallas Mavericks had big plans for Grant Williams, when they acquired him in a sign-and-trade during the offseason. The expectation was Williams evolving into a full-time starter, leader and one of the NBA’s top 3&D players for the Mavericks. Williams was the only player outside of Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving on the cover of the Mavs 2023-24 media guide, serving as a visual reminder how much faith the team put in him.
In his last season with the Boston Celtics, Williams averaged 8.1 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 79 games, started 23 games. He shot 45.4 percent from the floor and 39.5 percent beyond the arc. That team finished second in their conference and made a run to the Eastern Conference Finals.
In his tenure with the Celtics, Williams showcased versatility on great defense, physicality and consistency shooting beyond the arc. Williams played in the NBA Playoffs in each of his first four seasons, advancing to three Eastern Conference Finals (2020, 2022, 2023) and one NBA Finals (2022). His 61 career postseason appearances rank second on the Mavericks roster behind Irving. His experience on a contender in addition to the opportunity in the Mavs starting lineup, with Dorian Finney-Smith departing to Brooklyn in the Irving trade, felt like a natural fit for Williams to excel around Dončić and Irving.
In the annual GM survey, Williams was voted second as the most underrated pickup ahead of the 2023-24 season. Unfortunately, Williams hasn’t lived up that hype surrounding his arrival to Dallas. Williams started the season strong, averaged 14.0 points on 54.5 percent shooting the ball, 4.1 rebounds and 1.1 assists in the first eight games but fatigue set in.
Williams came into the season weighing more than his preferred playing weight, due to having surgery in the offseason on his left hand to repair a torn ligament. He played with the injury from March through the Eastern Conference Finals. so the lack of endurance was on display after an increase in minutes during the first few weeks of the season, playing 35 minutes a game.
The Mavericks coaching staff challenged him to get his weight down and Williams has since dropped 18 to 20 pounds since the beginning of the season. The staff wanted him to increase his confidence levels and be prepared to play over 30 minutes a night, but the performance in the first eight games didn’t carry over to his preferred weight at 245 poinds. He has averaged 6.9 points on 38.1 percent shooting the ball, 3.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists in the last 36 games. Williams is shooting 2.2 less threes than his did in the first eight games.
The Mavericks stand at 26-22 and had the worst luck with injuries this season, with their top rotation players missing numerous games and impacting the team’s chances to find consistency but Williams has been a constant player available. He has only missed four games this season and has yet to find his way back to form, that made him a big acquisition for Dallas.
Through the struggles offensively, Williams’ hesitation to shoot the ball from the perimeter has halted his confidence and his lack of ball handling, after the countless pump fakes, doesn’t help his awaited resurgence. Defensively, Williams has shown flashes on occasion but not enough consistently to the point where it impacts the overall game as other players have surpassed him in that focus area as primary defenders on the team in Lively, Derrick Jones Jr., Dante Exum and a returning Maxi Kleber.
The increased role and adjustment to a new system can take time for players but after 44 games, the Mavs keep waiting for a return on their investment with Williams producing a stretch of good games. He scored a career-high 27 points and tied a career high seven threes against the Sacramento Kings last week but the next game he scored three points. Williams has self awareness, he knows his first half of the season was bad and that he is struggling shooting the ball.
In the wins (22) he has played in, Williams has shot the ball extremely well, shooting 48.6 percent from the field and 43.4 from three-point range. In the losses (22) he has played in, Williams hasn’t shot the ball well, shooting 35.2 percent from the field and 32 percent from three-point range. Williams is 25 years old and fits the timeline of a player who can grow with Dončić but his performance has to be better as he looks forward to turning the corner in the second half of the season.
Williams has been a model of excellence off the court as he is great with the media, serves as the First Vice President of the National Basketball Players Association, and participates in numerous Dallas-Fort Worth community events for the Mavericks. In the past week, Williams joined students for a Mavs Reading Timeout at the Forest Green Dallas Public Library. Students received a book to read along, as well as goodies from the Mavs and Whataburger. Williams also helped deliver and unload the backpacks and other essential needs at Community Partners of Dallas (CPD), one of the first stops for children who have been removed from their homes. Williams donated nearly $5,000 worth of essential needs, focusing on young boys and teens to provide additional resources for the case workers to fill the backpacks. The Mavs just need him excel on the court as well.
It feels like an eternity since training camp, when Jason Kidd was looking for two starters to capture starting spots surrounding Dončić, Irving and Williams. Fast forward to present day, Kidd found two starters (Lively and Jones) while Williams only starts as the result of injuries.
Only time will tell if Williams can prove the Mavs right and become the valuable role player they envisioned him to be around their stars.