Grant Williams, who left the Boston Celtics in free agency a few months ago, finds himself in the team’s news cycle. Again.
Williams spent four seasons with Boston as a big floor spacer who showed flashes as a defensive stopper. But by the end of his tenure, his outspoken personality had overshadowed his contributions on the field. His constant jawing and visible antics have clearly rubbed some the wrong way, including the voice of the Celtics’ Mike Gorman.
During a recent appearance on 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Toucher & Hardy, Gorman slammed Williams in a truly surreal rant.
“He was annoying to everyone. I think at first everyone thought he was kind of smart, but he’s kind of cute and he’s kind of funny,” Gorman said of Williams (h/t Boston.com). “Then it kind of wore out. There were few people in Dallas, obviously. … He’s had some issues in that area and if he doesn’t get rid of it, he won’t have enough for teams to say, ‘Well, okay, but despite that, we’re going to keep him here because He’s a great player.” .’ He is not.
“He’s an extra. An eighth, ninth or tenth guy on your roster, so these guys are very replaceable. This guy is a bad locker room guy. If you’re a bad locker room guy, you’re eighth or ninth, you won’t stay eighth or ninth for long because you won’t stay on the team long.
The story caught fire online, spreading quickly thanks to the many aggregator pages that picked it up. When Jayson Tatum saw the story, he quickly defended Williams.
Grant Williams = Great teammate! https://t.co/JYHCavRNC3
–Jayson Tatum (@jaytatum0) March 13, 2024
Mike Gorman has been with the Boston Celtics for over 40 years. Even with his advanced age, it’s hard to imagine he doesn’t know. Between the value of his name and his long-standing relationships, he can gather all the information he wants.
Conversely, Tatum has always praised Williams in his interviews and they seem to be good friends. When the two reunited in Dallas, they were shown laughing before and after the match. Williams even started popping the Tatum 2s on the floor.
Celtics coaches Ime Udoka and Joe Mazzulla have criticized Williams on several occasions. He loved complaining to officials and making fun of the other team’s top stars. Each call was an excuse for Williams to insert a few words. It was more reminiscent of a professional wrestling character than a basketball player struggling to climb the ladder.
I’m sure Gorman and Tatum are right. Williams probably annoyed a lot of people within the Cs organization. He was spotty at best when given minutes, and he could never carve out a spot in the rotation for too long at a time. The trainers clashed with him and were tired of the constant stunts.
Behind the scenes, it was probably a different story. Despite his reputation as a locker room pariah, Williams garnered enough support from his fellow players to become vice president of the NBA Players Association. He wouldn’t achieve such an important position without the support of his teammates. Sometimes the clichés are correct and the truth probably lies somewhere in between.
With a long media history, Gorman should have recognized the attempt to make him headline news and responded more strategically. Tatum was just defending his friend. The problem is that this shouldn’t be a topic of discussion.
Williams tries to revive his career with the sad Charlotte Hornets – he is far from the Celtics radar. It seems like he’s making news in the Boston market every week, and it’s sickening. It is time to move on.
