Grant Dean Williams (born November 30, 1998) is an American professional
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
player for the
Boston Celtics of the
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
(NBA). He played
college basketball
In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...
for the
Tennessee Volunteers
The Tennessee Volunteers and Lady Volunteers are the 20 male and female varsity intercollegiate athletics programs that represent the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Volunteers compete in Division I of the National Collegi ...
.
Williams was drafted 22nd overall in the
2019 NBA draft
The 2019 NBA draft was held on June 20, 2019. It took place at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur United States college basketball players and other eligible players, i ...
by the Celtics. He reached the
NBA Finals with the team in 2022.
College career
![Grant Williams 2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3d/Grant_Williams_2.jpg)
Williams was an All-
Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities o ...
player as a freshman, sophomore, and junior for the Tennessee Volunteers. He was awarded back-to-back
SEC Player of the Year honors for the
2017–18 and
2018–19 seasons, becoming the first player to do so since
Corliss Williamson
Corliss Mondari Williamson (born December 4, 1973) is an American basketball coach and former basketball player who played for four teams during his 12-year NBA career. He last served as an assistant coach for the Phoenix Suns. His nickname i ...
in 1995. Williams led Tennessee as a third seed in the
2018 NCAA tournament and second seed in the
2019 NCAA tournament.
Professional career
Boston Celtics (2019–present)
Williams was selected with the 22nd overall draft pick by the Boston Celtics in the 2019 NBA draft. On July 11, 2019, the Celtics announced that they had signed him to a four-year, $11.8 million rookie-scale contract. On October 23, 2019, Williams made his professional debut, coming off the bench in a loss to the
Philadelphia 76ers. On December 4, 2019, he made his first career start in a winning effort against the
Miami Heat
The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The club plays its home games at FT ...
. In an effort to garner support for teammates making the
2020 NBA All-Star Game
The 2020 NBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game that was played on February 16, 2020, during the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2019–20 season. It was the 69th edition of the NBA All-Star Game, and was played at the United ...
, Williams pledged to dye his hair pink if
Jaylen Brown
Jaylen Marselles Brown (born October 24, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played one year of college basketball for the California Golden Bears, being n ...
,
Jayson Tatum
Jayson Christopher Tatum Sr. (; born March 3, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A McDonald's All-American in high school in Missouri, he played college baske ...
, and
Kemba Walker all received a selection. However, Williams did not do so as Brown did not make the team. Williams finished his rookie season averaging just over 15 minutes per game in 69 games, 3.4 points per game, and 2.6 rebounds per game.
Upon completion of the
2020–21 NBA season
The 2020–21 NBA season was the 75th season of the National Basketball Association (NBA), though the 75th anniversary was not celebrated until the following season. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the regular season was reduced to 72 games for ea ...
, Williams' second season in the league, he slightly increased his averages in all major statistical categories. He finished the season averaging just over 18 minutes per game, 4.7 points per game, and 2.8 rebounds per game.
On March 21, 2022, Williams scored a then career-high 20 points in a win against the
Oklahoma City Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team plays i ...
. He finished the
2021–22 NBA season
The 2021–22 NBA season was the 76th season of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The NBA returned to a full 82-game regular season in its normal mid-October to mid-April schedule for the first time since the 2018–19 NBA season, aft ...
with career-best averages with over 24 minutes per game, 7.8 points per game, and 3.6 rebounds per game. On May 15, Williams scored a career-high 27 points in a decisive Game 7 win over the
Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...
in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. His performance was highlighted by a 7-for-18 mark from three point range, records for both made threes and three attempts in an NBA Game 7. Williams helped the Celtics reach the
NBA Finals, but lost to the
Golden State Warriors in 6 games.
On October 26, 2022, Williams was suspended for one game without pay for making contact with a game official during a 102–120 loss to the
Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January ...
two days earlier.
Career statistics
NBA
Regular season
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Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, 69 , , 5 , , 15.1 , , .412 , , .250 , , .722 , , 2.6 , , 1.0 , , .4 , , .5 , , 3.4
, -
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Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, 61 , , 9 , , 18.1 , , .437 , , .372 , , .588 , , 2.8 , , 1.0 , , .5 , , .4 , , 4.7
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
, style="text-align:left;",
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, 77 , , 21 , , 24.4 , , .475 , , .411 , , .905 , , 3.6 , , 1.0 , , .5 , , .7 , , 7.8
, - class="sortbottom"
, style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career
, 209 , , 35 , , 19.4 , , .449 , , .369 , , .775 , , 3.0 , , 1.0 , , .5 , , .6 , , 5.4
Playoffs
, -
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2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...
, style="text-align:left;",
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, 17 , , 0 , , 10.0 , , .577 , , .588 , , .700 , , 1.5 , , .4 , , .1 , , .3 , , 2.8
, -
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2021
File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...
, style="text-align:left;",
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, 5 , , 0 , , 11.4 , , .500 , , .500 , , 1.000 , , 2.0 , , .8 , , .2 , , .8 , , 3.4
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
2022
File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeypo ...
, style="text-align:left;",
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, 24 , , 5 , , 27.3 , , .433 , , .393 , , .808 , , 3.8 , , .8 , , .3 , , .8 , , 8.6
, - class="sortbottom"
, style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career
, 46 , , 5 , , 19.2 , , .457 , , .427 , , .800 , , 2.8 , , .6 , , .2 , , .6 , , 5.9
College
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
2016–17
, style="text-align:left;",
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
, 32 , , 29 , , 25.4 , , .504 , , .375 , , .667 , , 5.9 , , 1.1 , , .8 , , 1.9 , , 12.6
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
2017–18
, style="text-align:left;",
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
, 35 , , 35 , , 28.8 , , .473 , , .120 , , .764 , , 6.0 , , 1.9 , , .6 , , 1.3 , , 15.2
, -
, style="text-align:left;",
2018–19
, style="text-align:left;",
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
, 37 , , 37 , , 31.9 , , .564 , , .326 , , .819 , , 7.5 , , 3.2 , , 1.1 , , 1.5 , , 18.8
, - class="sortbottom"
, style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career
, 104 , , 101 , , 28.9 , , .516 , , .291 , , .758 , , 6.5 , , 2.1 , , .9 , , 1.5 , , 15.7
Personal life
Williams' mother, Teresa Johnson, is an
electrical engineer for
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil List of government space agencies, space program ...
. His father, Gilbert, is a jazz artist and former college basketball player, who has worked as a bodyguard for musicians, including
Prince
A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. T ...
. He is a cousin of former NBA players
Salim
Salim, Saleem or Selim may refer to:
People
*Salim (name), or Saleem or Salem or Selim, a name of Arabic origin
* Salim (poet) (1800–1866)
* Saleem (playwright) (fl. 1996)
*Selim I, Selim II and Selim III, Ottoman Sultans
* Selim people, an e ...
and
Damon Stoudamire
Damon Lamon Stoudamire (born September 3, 1973) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is currently an assistant coach for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) The , point guard was selected ...
.
Turning down offers from
Ivy League
The Ivy League is an American collegiate athletic conference comprising eight private research universities in the Northeastern United States. The term ''Ivy League'' is typically used beyond the sports context to refer to the eight school ...
schools
Harvard and
Yale
Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...
, Williams graduated from Tennessee in three years with a degree in business. At Tennessee, he received the C & C Millwright Athletic Scholarship.
Williams threw out the first pitch at the
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...
game on August 7, 2019.
References
External links
Boston Celtics profileTennessee Volunteers profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Grant
1998 births
Living people
All-American college men's basketball players
American men's basketball players
Basketball players from Houston
Boston Celtics draft picks
Boston Celtics players
Power forwards (basketball)
Tennessee Volunteers basketball players