The Lakers addressed their need for a center following the Anthony Davis trade.
LOS ANGELES – Prior to the Los Angeles Lakers’ game against the Golden State Warriors on Thursday, JJ Redick was unable to comment on the team’s trade for Mark Williams as it had not yet been made official by the NBA.
But the trade became official before the game ended, paving the way for JJ Redick to speak about being able to acquire a center of Williams’ caliber for the stretch run of the season.
“I met Mark when he was playing at Duke, as he was coming out of the draft process. . .gotten really good feedback through the years on his character, his intelligence level and I watched him develop and just a big fan of his,” JJ Redick said. “Just feel like he’s a really good fit for now and he’s a really good fit for the future.”
Redick is no stranger to Williams; he severed in a mentorship type role for him when he was in college. Redick also did a lot of background work on Williams’ game last offseason when he thought he was going to get a chance to interview for the Charlotte Hornets’ then vacant head coaching job.
With Anthony Davis being traded to the Dallas Mavericks as part of the Luka Doncic trade, the Lakers had a gaping hole at starting center. With Williams now in the fold, they have solved that problem for now.
Mark Williams joins the Lakers
As days leading up to the NBA trade deadline ticked down, there was absolutely no indication that the Hornets were even entertaining any trade offers for Mark Williams. When they traded Nick Richards to the Phoenix Suns, it was assumed that deal paved the way for Williams as their featured big man.
But according to Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka, the Hornets approached them first regarding a potential trade, as per Jovan Buha of The Athletic.
The Lakers decided to go all-in when it was clear that Williams was available to them, and the deal was agreed upon within the last day or two. The Mavericks had done a good job surrounding Doncic with lob threats such as Daniel Gafford and Dereck Lively II, and Williams is in the mold of that type of rim-running big man.
“I think Luka can play a number of ways. It would be very advantageous for us to have multiple centers that can provide a vertical threat. We feel that Mark is a young starting center in this NBA and he provides that vertical threat,” Redick said. “I think we as a staff have a job to do in developing him as a screener, decision-maker in the pocket and on the defensive end. But we’re confident with is character, work ethic, IQ, that he’s going to be a really good player for us.”
Williams has dealt with injury issues during his three-year NBA career so far, and sidelined to start this season due to a foot injury. But he’s apparently healthy now and has suited up in 22 games for the Hornets. He’s been averaging 15.6 points, 9.6 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.2 blocked shots with splits of 58.6 percent shooting from the field and 78 percent shooting from the free-throw line.
Redick was not sure when Williams would make his Lakers debut, but there’s no question he has the potential to make a major impact.