Now healthy, Williams is proving to be a centerpiece of the future in Charlotte.
On Jan. 15, 2025, Mark Williams was unofficially anointed as the Hornets’ center of the future. That day Nick Richards was traded to the Phoenix Suns in what can be viewed as a ceremonial opening of the gates for Williams. What followed? Interior domination and statistical greatness that has the Charlotte hopeful.
It may have taken longer than anticipated, but that was always the plan since Williams was selected as the No. 15 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. However, sometimes, the best-laid plans can go awry.
Injuries initially derailed the Duke product’s rookie season. First to his ankle, then a thumb injury that later required surgery. He also struggled to gain ground in a battle for playing time with Richards, Mason Plumlee, and Kai Jones.
His sophomore season offered a glimpse of what could be. Earning a starting role, playing in 19 of Charlotte’s first 20 contests, the big man played 26.7 minutes per game, averaging, 12.7 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 1.1 blocks. Unfortunately, a back contusion ended his season, putting him on the shelf for the final 62 games of the 2023-24 campaign.
With the start of training camp looming in the fall of 2024, another injury befell Williams. This time a left foot tendon strain, once again hitting the pause button on his future. The now 23-year-old missed the first 20 games of this season, returning Dec. 3 against the 76ers. After regaining his footing, and being eased into playing time, Williams started to prove he was ready for a bigger role, and entered the starting lineup on Dec. 13, then played over 20 minutes for the first time this season on Dec. 26.
As each game passed, more rust was knocked off Williams’ seven-foot frame. A 9-for-9 shooting effort on the way to 20 points, 12 rebounds, and three blocks against the Bulls on Dec. 30 capped his 2024 and offered a peek at what the new year would bring.
Off the heels of Williams’ finest performance to date, where he dropped 24 points and pulled down 16 rebounds against Phoenix on Jan. 12, the Hornets shipped Richards to the Suns in a deal that brought back Josh Okogie and three second-round picks. Williams already had a hold on the starting job in Charlotte, but now the man he had battled with for playing time since he stepped into the league was with another team. It was a declaration that now was Williams’ time.
Over his last four games, Williams’ production has skyrocketed. In his first game after the trade, he put up what at the time was a career-high, 31 points on 12-for-14 shooting, to go with 13 rebounds, two assists, two steals, and a block. He followed that up with another double-double, scoring 19 points and pulling down 19 rebounds. Then in his most dominant performance to date, Wednesday night against the Grizzlies, Williams set a new career high, scoring 38 points on 14-for-18 shooting, with nine rebounds, and also tied a career best with five assists.
In all, during the four games since the trade, Williams has averaged playing 32.9 minutes per game, 25.3 points, 13.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.3 steals, and 1.5 blocks, while shooting 63.5% from the field. These are numbers that would put him amongst the upper echelon of NBA players. More importantly, the Hornets are 3-1 since the move, showing his production is helping the club play winning basketball.
The sample size is small, but no one should be surprised if Williams can continue posting numbers within the realm of what he has. Standing a towering 7-foot-2 in shoes, with a 7-foot, 6.5-inch wingspan, and a standing reach of 9-foot-9, Williams is a sizeable force to stop on the offensive end and nearly impenetrable space eater on the defensive side. It certainly won’t hurt him either to have an elite playmaker like LaMelo Ball to build chemistry with as a pick-and-roll duo, and rim runner.
In fact, with the rustiness of missed time removed, Williams may now just be scratching the surface of what he can do. You can catch Williams and the Hornets in action again Friday at 7 ET against the Trail Blazers on NBA League Pass.
