Grant Williams Happiest For This Celtics Player Who Won NBA Title

Grant Williams had an up-close view of the Boston Celtics clinching the NBA title in June at TD Garden.

Williams was in the building to see the confetti rain down on his former team and even made his way to the locker room to stop in on the celebration. Williams remembered the reactions from Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum reaching the pinnacle of their sport, but Williams was happiest for one player in particular who took Williams under his wing during his time with Boston.

“The smile on (Tatum’s) face face, (Brown’s) face, (Al Horford’s) face — that’s the one person I wanted it the most for,” Williams told reporters prior to the Celtics facing the Charlotte Hornets on Friday, per CLNS Media’s Noa Dalzell. “I love Derrick (White) and those guys, but Al, man, that’s my vet. Him and Blake Griffin were huge for me in that last year in Boston, just keeping my mind and mental space in a good spot. I’ll always be thankful for him and his family.”

Many felt the way Williams did when it came to Horford finally getting to the mountaintop. A respected leader for the Celtics, it took Horford 17 seasons to get a ring.

Williams spent the first four seasons of his NBA career with the Celtics after the franchise selected him with No. 22 overall pick in the 2019 draft. He turned into a contributor off the bench and helped the Celtics reach the 2022 NBA Finals, but was viewed as a dispensable piece.

Williams landed with the Dallas Mavericks as part of a sign-and-trade in July 2023 as the 6-foot-6, 236-pound forward inked a four-year, $54 million contract. His time with the Mavericks last season was turbulent, though, with Williams in and out of the regular rotation and reported tension between him and star Luka Doncic. He was dealt to the Charlotte Hornets at the trade deadline.

The 25-year-old averaged a career-high 13.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3.2 assists in 29 games, but playing for the Hornets — Williams’ hometown team — was at the opposite end of the NBA spectrum compared to the Celtics. While the Celtics got their hands on the Larry O’Brien Trophy, the Hornets tied for the third-worst record in the league at 21-61.

But there was no animosity or jealously on Williams’ part seeing his former teammates accomplish the feat without him.

“It was special, man,” Williams said. “Honestly, I didn’t really feel down because I left Boston. It was one of those, where, if I had gotten traded out of there, like there was some bad blood or something like that, it’d been different.

“But I was excited for those guys because we didn’t get it done for those two years before. I was fortunate to be able to witness when they got it done.”