Is Mavericks Grant Williams Biggest Disappointment In NBA This Season? What Should Mavs Do Next?

Is Mavericks Grant Williams Biggest Disappointment In NBA This Season? What Should Mavs Do Next?

Hey what’s up Mass fans Kevin gray Mavericks pre- and postgame host on 971 the freak on the Dallas Mavericks radio network appreciate you joining me for another minisode of inside the Mavs the official Mavericks podcast of 971 the freak if you’re watching this on YouTube on my YouTube channel at Kevin gry

Sports really appreciate that if you’re listening you could be listening on iHeart radio Apple podcast Spotify wherever you get your podcast for free make sure you get the podcast a five star rating write a review for it while you’re there you can follow me on Twitter or X or whatever we call it

These days Kevin gr Sports the same on Facebook and on Instagram Mavericks unfortunately began the new year with a 37-point Beatdown at the hands of the Utah Jazz on Monday night as Luca donic and Company were absolutely Dreadful with the lack of energy throughout the course of the game as the Jazz return

The favor after they got beat down by 50 back on on December 6th at the America Airlines Center the Mavericks I’m sure after that game in Utah on Monday were just ready to get back home to the AAC where they begin on Wednesday a seven game home stand which is their longest

Of the season and they begin with DeAndre Aton and the Portland Trailblazers for not one but two games starting on Wednesday so I’m sure a team that yes has won 11 games so far on the road this year are ready to sleep in their own beds for the next couple of

Weeks as they try to stack up home wins as they begin that seven game home stand and it’s important for them to do so in a really tight western conference with the Mavericks are 19 and 15 through 34 games to be able to have some confidence that they can win at the American

Airlines Center where they’re only eight and seven so far this year we saw the return of Kyrie Irving on Monday night didn’t play great only having nine points in the game but at the same time hopefully for them the offensive continuity that they had prior to him

Missing his 12 games with his right heel contusion will get picked back up where they left off that was simply not the case on Monday night against Utah who were able to really put it to the Mavericks and be able to take them out in Salt Lake City but that’s all well

And good and gone now the Mavericks now turn their attention to their next seven games at home and more importantly turn their attention to trying to figure out how and he’s the subject of today’s conversation how to get Grant Williams going Grant Williams so far this year

Has been a major disappointment for this team based on what we thought he was going to be bringing to the Mavericks this season and Beyond a young man at 25 years of age who is making over 12 million dollars so far a season from the Mavericks has not been good on offense

Or defense you look at his overall defensive ratings so far through the 31 games that he’s played he’s at a 118.1 that is by far the worst of his career through his first almost five seasons in the league he’s got a net rating of NE -4.9 so far again the worst of his

Career at this point and you look at what happened in Utah on Monday my man was a negative 17 too many negatives so far for Grant Williams who we thought after the first seven or eight games of the season was really coming into his own as part of the starting lineup

Knocking down playing some highlevel defense and giving the mavers what they thought fitting seamlessly into this team based on the expectations that they have for him and it’s simply fallen off a cliff since then questions about whether or not he is in the proper shape to be doing what he’s supposed to be

Doing on both ends of the floor not playing the kind of highlevel IQ defense that we thought he was going to be bringing based off of what he was doing in Boston especially in the playoffs over the last couple of years and more importantly now he is fallen out of the

Starting lineup for this team and questions about whether or not his rotation spot should still be on this team anyway now I’m not ready to take it all the way there yet for Grant Williams I think there’s still plenty of time for him to be able to redeem himself but

When you start looking and going inside the numbers based on what he’s done so far this year it’s concerning he’s averaging 14.7 points per 100 possession so far this season that is the worst for him since his 2020 2021 year that was his second year in the league where he was averaging at

That point 12.3 points per 100 possessions so far the season per 100 he’s shooting 41.7% that is the worst of his career since his rookie year so again whether you look at the advanced numbers some of the traditional numbers based on what he’s been doing the Mavericks may have

Overvalued what Grant Williams was going to bring to this team now the question is can he find a way to get back to the kind of player that we’ve saw over the last couple of years when he was in Boston especially in the playoffs where we got to know Grant Williams for his

Ability to take and knock down three-point shots in volume but more importantly play the kind of intense highlevel defense that the Mavericks have been so desperately needing from the perimeter for the last few years yes I know that they’ve had the lights of Reggie Bullock and Dorian finy Smith

Over the last couple of years before both of those individuals of course have been moved on from where Grant Williams was supposed to be at age 25 part of the timeline and should still be part of the timeline for Luca donic to be able to have a young teammate that can do some

Of the things that at times donic can’t do now you give donic credit he has embraced the defensive side of the ball playing much more active and being much more aggressive on that end getting in the passing Lanes creating Steals and deflections and trying to ensure that

He’s completing his game as being a better Defender no one will ever accuse LCA dones of being an all-nba Defender but the effort is there which is more than what we can say over the last few seasons based off of what he’s done each of the last couple years dones has

Gotten better as def as a Defender this year he’s taking it much more seriously based on the fact he’s also in really good shape so far despite dealing with the quad injury which by the way real quick was noticeably bothering him on Monday night as he shot extremely poorly in the game

And you could tell there wasn’t a lot of lift especially on his three-point shots something to continue to monitor for Luca donic as he continues to go on for the rest of the season but back to Grant Williams as I mentioned shooting the worst of his career since his rookie

Year shooting at 38% from three again in the worst of his career since his Rook second season his sophomore year back in 2020 2021 where he shot 37% he shot 25% during his rookie year but again you get the drift on where I’m coming from last season he averaged 8.1 points per game

This year 8.8 points per game so so far shooting 65% from the free throw line which is down 12% from last season alone so again whether you look at the traditional numbers the advanced numbers whether the eye test tells you you can tell so far that Grant Williams has not

Lived up to expectations now how did the Mavericks move forward they’ve got to find a way to get his confidence back where he is not only able to play in high lever situations whether it be in clutch moments in the last five minutes of games but he has to make the most of

The rotational minutes that he has provided Mitch means he needs to be knocking down three-pointers at a much higher rate so far this season my man is about two of five from the three-point line again roughly 38% from three he has got to do that in a little bit more

Volume this year to be able to find himself back on the floor shooting with the kind of consistency that we saw during the early part of the year but Mavericks fans feel like right now that he is a liability on both ends of the floor so can grant Williams get into the

Kind of physical shape that will him to see more minutes on the floor can he shoot at a much better rate both from the field and from the free throw line that would justify him playing alongside Luca dones because ideally this is what you would want from Grant Williams a guy

That on the defensive end can guard multiple positions but then knock down open three-pointers to be able to stretch the defense and create open lanes for Kyrie Irving and Luca donic that was the hope for Grant Williams coming into this season so far that simply hasn’t happened and then when you

Pair that with the lack of defense that youve seen and more importantly the way that guys like Dante exom and Derek Jones Jr have surpassed him by how well they’ve played so far this year it has made for so far a disastrous acquisition for the Dallas Mavericks but all hope is

Not lost here if we see the Grant Williams that we have seen over the last couple of postseasons in Boston where he was able in volume to knock down three-pointers but all also be a guy that you could count on on defense while being a high level Communicator that

Played alongside the likes of Jason Tatum and Jaylen Brown and others then we can maybe have some more confidence in what Grant Williams will be for the rest of the year but right now that confidence is simply not there and more importantly it has not been productive

For the Mavericks that is a problem a team that has already had difficulty over the last several years acquiring highlevel Talent yes I know that they were able to retain the services of Kyrie Irving but when you’re a team that’s not able to acquire highlevel talent to go alongside Luca donz or

Prove it at least for the most part that they have been able to you’ve got to be able to hit on the midrange type of signings that you’re able to get when you have a guy like a grant Williams this is a kind of piece that you would

Think based on how you’re trying to round out this team that would come in fit in seamlessly and then be able to move forward as part of a potential championship roster because again this team has not been able to acquire the kind of highlevel talent at consistently throughout the course of Luca Don’s

Tenure and when they have it hasn’t worked out kristos porzingis obviously being the other biggest example in how he’s doing now what he did in Washington last season and now what he’s doing in Boston so far for them this year and then when they had one under their nose

When they didn’t realize it and Jaylen Brunson he he goes off to New York and continues to ball out there as becoming the new King of New York it feels like so whether the Mavericks have tried to acquire high level Talent or they missed it when it was right under their nose

With someone like Jaylen Brunson they have to hit on the margins because the margin of error for them is very very thin especially when you’re trying to keep Luca donic happy and ensuring that he remains in a Maverick uniform I’m not saying anything about the idea that Luca

Don is leaving I don’t believe any of that Luca dones is happy here and he’s fine here so don’t take it as I’m saying that this may be a reason why Luca dones looks for a reason to leave but don’t give him a reason to look to leave and

Grant Williams has to be a part of the solution and not the problem but give the other Mavericks credit for being able to step up when Grant Williams has not been able to do so Grant Williams told me through the first six games when

I talked to him a few weeks ago that he would give himself a c as far as his performance is concerned offensively he was playing okay at that point but from his communication and from everything else wasn’t great he’s got to find a way

To get that my man at least to a b because you got to be above average if we’re going to continue to see if you’re going to be a part of the future of this team going forward the February 8th trade deadline is not that far away just

A little over a month or so Mavericks fans are already trying to find packages to put Grant Williams in to move him out of town and he hasn’t even played half a season here yet that’s disappointing when it comes to what Grant Williams has brought so far do I think he could turn

It around I do but there has to be a high level commitment on both ends of the floor and finding a way to Simply remove what has been the negative start for him but continue to move forward in the work that needs to be done to have the kind of quality rotational

Minutes that he needs but right now I don’t see him getting back into the starting lineup anytime soon Derek Jones Jr has been too good Dante exom has been too good and this team is now finally as healthy as it’s been so far this year think about this the Mavericks use their

19th different starting lineup on Monday against the Utah Jazz for a team that we thought was going to have some real stability with Luca Kyrie Grant Williams obviously with Derek Lively there as well you thought that you were going to see a team consistently put out the same

Lineup every single night this team has been devastated by injuries and in the case of Grant Williams inconsistent play that has forced them to use different lineups so far this year and yet and still this team is four games above 500 so you give the players credit for being

Able to withstand the injuries adversity and the inconsistent play of some of their teammates and even at times overcoming Jason Kidd and some of the decisions that he makes on the floor daytoday night to night game to game but now as the Mavericks turn the calendar from 2023 to

2024 they have got to start getting the production from their biggest acquisition this past off season and that’s Grant Williams because there should be no reason why late free agent signings like a Derrick Jones Jr or even Dante exom who was not expected to have

The kind of impact that he’s had so far this year should be outplaying Grant Williams especially knowing what kind of playoff success he’s had over the last couple of years he’s been there and done that in high lever situations so there should be no reason why he’s

Underperforming the way that he is so far this year and yet here we are you and I having this discussion right now that shouldn’t be the case for the Mavericks if I’m disappointed if you’re disappointed think about how disappointed the Mavericks are so far and what Grant Williams has provided and

The lack thereof he’s got to find a way to turn it around and here’s my biggest point of all of this once Grant Williams starts to turn the corner the depth that you have seen the Mavericks been able to utilize even when he has not played well becomes that much more fortified based

On what this team has on its roster right now regard if it makes a move at the trade deadline if Grant Williams becomes the kind of guy that you saw during the first seven eight games of the year and finds a measure of consistency the Mavericks are in a

Pretty good place because of the flexibility of their rotations that they’ll have moving forward once especially Maxi kba comes back as well this team right now has enough to be a top six team in the west they have enough potentially to be even a top four

Team in the west depending on how things fall and shake and whether or not this team can stay healthy that is how much Grant Williams matters to this team the difference from what this team could look like in making maybe the second round of the playoffs versus a team who

May not find themselves in the top eight despite the fact that they have Luca donic and Kyrie Irving and any team that has Luca dones and Kyrie Irving on it should be nowhere near outside of the top six at minimum they should be a top

Six team if not a top four team but Grant W Williams has to find a way to get better for this team’s ceiling to increase if it doesn’t this team can only go so far and the weight of a contract could be disappointing enough to find Grant Williams not only out of

The rotation but maybe not on this team and that is a far cry from what we thought he was going to be this upcoming season but again 34 games in I’m not going to hit the panic button just yet you shouldn’t hit the panic button just yet but should you be disappointed and

Frustrated by the start that Grant Williams has provided so far as a Dallas Maverick sure you should and that’s understandable but also in your frustration realize there’s a long season ahead there’s still time to turn it around and if he does the conversation that you and I are having

Will hopefully be a much positive much more positive one by the time we get to oh I don’t know March and then toward April as we get toward the NBA Playoffs but that has to start now Grant Williams has to put behind him what was a

Difficult 2023 in the first part of the season for the Mavericks and now with 2024 right here while yeah he didn’t get off to a great start against Utah maybe the home cooking for him will be much better as he gets to settle in for seven games at home seven straight games at

Home going forward all in all Grant Williams has to be a part of of the solution and not the problem otherwise the Mavericks themselves have got a big problem with Grant Williams appreciate you joining me here on this inside the Mavs mini here you can download and subscribe to the

Podcast wherever you get your podcast for free make sure you give the podcast a five star rating and write a review for it while you’re there you can find me on Twitter or X or whatever kevinr Sports same on Instagram and on Facebook as well remember episodes drop every

Monday Wednesday and Friday with my partner Grant abset but I’ll also have daily Mavs content here on my channel here at Kevin gry Sports so you can get the latest Intel insights and discussion around the Dallas Mavericks I’ll have the pregame on Wednesday at 7 pm as the Mavericks take on the Portland

Trailblazers again for the first of seven consecutive home games with the Mavericks will be be able to settle in at the AAC for the next two weeks and hopefully be able to stack some wins on top of it and what has been a deep Western Conference so far a fun

Competitive Western Conference so far the Mavericks now have a chance to be able to put it together and get that road or that home record I should say a little bit better just eight and seven so far at the AAC mavers need to turn it

Up as we move forward into the month of January again appreciate you joining me here on our inside the Mavs minod follow me on Twitter at Kevin gr Sports subscribe to Kevin gr Sports here on YouTube and make sure you follow Grant on his Channel at Grant ath and also to

His YouTube channel at Grant ath and the same on Twitter and the inside themass podcast on Twitter at inside themass my name is Kevin gray and I’ll talk to you next time right here on Kevin grey Sports here on YouTube for another episode of inside the Mavs have a good

Day and I’ll talk to you later peace

#dallasmavericks #lukadoncic #grantwilliams #kyrieirving

On this mini-sode of ‘Inside The Mavs’, Kevin Gray, Mavericks Pre/Post Game Host on 97.1 The Freak discusses his thoughts on the start to Grant Williams tenure with the Mavericks. KG breaks down the numbers behind Williams struggles and the failed expectations of his signing through the season thus far. He also discusses what the Mavs should do with Grant Williams next amid growing frustration for the team and the fanbase about his performance. Kevin also talks about what Williams needs to do next to get back into the significant part of the rotation and if he can turn things around going forward for the rest of the season and much more!

Be sure to follow Kevin on Twitter @KevinGraySports and download and subscribe to ‘Inside The Mavs’ wherever you get podcasts free by clicking the link here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/inside-the-mavs/id1687581495