Hornets Reserve forward Grant Williams Sources say he tore the ACL, meniscus and other related ligaments in his right knee during his team's 125-119 loss to the Bucks on Saturday night ESPN's Shams Charania. He will now miss the remainder of the 2024-25 NBA season.
The 25-year-old was in the midst of a productive second season in Charlotte. In his 16 healthy games this year, he played behind the starters Brandon Miller And mile bridgesWilliams averaged 10.4 points on .439/.365/.838 shooting splits. He also recorded 5.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists per night.
The Tennessee alum was originally selected by the Celtics with the No. 22 pick in the 2019 draft. He had some memorable moments with Boston, but suffered from shooting inconsistencies in the postseason. At 1.95 meters tall, Williams was a little too small for his defensive duties and ultimately moved to the Mavericks as a restricted free agent in the summer of 2023. and-trade.
This experiment only lasted 47 games before he was substituted again. As part of a transformative contract midway through the 2023-24 season, Williams was released along with the guard Seth Curry and a future first-round draft pick that the Hornets will receive in exchange PJ Washington. With Washington in tow, the Mavericks marched all the way to the NBA Finals.
Charlotte currently has all 15 standard roster spots filled. As ESPN's Bobby Marks notes (Twitter link), the team would have to waive a player, but would then have the option to apply for a disabled player exemption worth half of Williams' salary, or $6.5 million, and sign someone to fill it.
At 6-10, the Hornets are currently the No. 11 seed in the Eastern Conference, tied with the Nets and Pacers for records. Losing Williams is a major blow to their bench strength.