Alan Travis Williams (born January 28, 1993) 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 Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player for the

Nagoya Diamond Dolphins The are a professional basketball team that competes in the first division of the Japanese B.League. Prior to their entry into the B.League in September 2016, the club was the corporate team of Mitsubishi Electric. In 2020, the Diamond Dolphi ...

of the Japanese B.League. He played college basketball for

UC Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an independent teachers college, UCSB joined ...

before beginning his professional career with the Qingdao DoubleStar Eagles of the

Chinese Basketball Association The Chinese Basketball Association (), often abbreviated as the CBA, is the first-tier men's professional basketball league in China. The league is commonly known by fans as the CBA, and this acronym is even used in Chinese on a regular basis ...

in 2015.

High school career

Williams attended North High School. After playing in just one game as a freshman and averaging just 3.5 points as a sophomore, Williams averaged 12.5 points, 10.9 rebounds and 3.3 blocks per game as a junior in 2009–10. As a senior in 2010–11, he averaged 22.1 points, 16.2 rebounds, 4.5 blocks, 2.0 steals, and 1.5 assists, leading North to a Metro Region championship and the Class 5A quarterfinals. He was named Arizona State Player of the Year that season.

College career

Williams played four seasons of college basketball for

between 2011 and 2015, finishing his career as the Gauchos' all-time leader in rebounds and second all-time leading scorer. As a junior in 2013–14, he was named the Big West Conference Player of the Year. He also earned first-team All-

Big West The Big West Conference (BWC) is an American collegiate athletic conference whose member institutions participate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I. The conference was originally formed on July 1, 1969, as the Pacific ...

honors as a sophomore, junior, and senior, and led the NCAA in rebounding as a junior and senior. In 112 games (101 starts) over his four-year career, Williams averaged 15.5 points, 10.0 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 1.0 steals and 1.9 blocks in 27.0 minutes per game.

Professional career

2015 NBA Summer League

After going undrafted in the

2015 NBA draft The 2015 NBA draft was held on June 25, 2015, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. It was televised nationally in the U.S. by ESPN. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eli ...

, Williams played for the

Charlotte Hornets The Charlotte Hornets are an American professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hornets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team ...

(three games in Orlando) and

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA) ...

(four games in Las Vegas) during the

2015 NBA Summer League The 2015 NBA Summer League consisted of three professional sports, pro basketball sports league, leagues organized by the National Basketball Association, NBA: the Orlando Magic, Orlando Pro Summer League, Utah Jazz Summer League, and Las Vegas S ...

. For his play with the Rockets in Las Vegas, he earned All-NBA Summer League Second Team honors.

Qingdao DoubleStar Eagles (2015–2016)

On July 25, 2015, Williams signed a one-year deal with the Qingdao DoubleStar Eagles of the

. He appeared in 35 of the team's 38 games during the 2015–16 season, as the Eagles missed a playoff berth with a 16–22 win–loss record. Over those 35 games, he averaged 20.8 points, a league-leading 15.4 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.6 blocks per game.

Phoenix Suns (2016–2018)

On March 8, 2016, Williams signed a 10-day contract with the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA), We ...

. He made his NBA debut on March 17 during a 103–69 loss to the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. Since the 1991–92 season, the ...

, recording one point and one steal in two minutes. The following day, he signed a multi-year deal with the Suns. On April 9, he recorded a then season-high seven rebounds in a 121–100 win over the

New Orleans Pelicans The New Orleans Pelicans are an American professional basketball team based in New Orleans. The Pelicans compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Confere ...

. In the Suns' season finale on April 13, Williams recorded his first double-double in the NBA with season highs of 14 points and 12 rebounds (alongside 3 blocks) in a 114–105 win over the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The ...

. With the Suns' Summer League team in

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

, Williams was the only player to average a double-double throughout the event, averaging 11.8 points and a league-leading 11.2 rebounds over six games, which earned him All-NBA Summer League First Team honors. On September 1, 2016, his contract for the 2016–17 season was fully guaranteed by the Suns. On November 18, 2016, he had a season-best game with 15 points and 15 rebounds in a 116–96 win over the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

. On December 14, he was assigned to the

Northern Arizona Suns The Motor City Cruise are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Detroit, and are affiliated with the Detroit Pistons. The Cruise play their home games at Wayne State Fieldhouse. The franchise began play as the Long ...

of the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of the 2024–25 season, ...

. He was recalled the next day. On February 10, 2017, he had 14 points and 11 rebounds to go with a season-high four blocks in a 115–97 win over 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 Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was founded on January 16 ...

. With

Tyson Chandler Tyson Cleotis Chandler (born October 2, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player and coach. Chandler was drafted directly out of high school as the second overall pick of the 2001 NBA draft by the Los Angeles Clippers, then wa ...

sustaining an injury early in the game and

Alex Len Oleksii Yuriyovych Len (; born June 16, 1993), commonly known as Alex Len (), is a Ukrainian professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Before being drafted, he played two seasons for ...

missing the game with a suspension, Williams made the most of his 24 minutes on the court. On February 24, 2017, he scored a then season-high 16 points on 8-of-9 shooting in 15 minutes off the bench in a 128–121 overtime loss to the Chicago Bulls. Two days later, he scored a career-high 17 points and tied his career high with 15 rebounds in a 100–96 loss to 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 Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

, becoming just the 10th NBA player with multiple 15/15 games in his first 35 career games in the past 19 seasons. On March 5, Williams had 11 points and matched his career best with 15 rebounds in a 109–106 win over the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

. On March 9, he had 16 points and 10 rebounds for his fifth straight double-double off the bench in a 122–110 loss to the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

. He became the first player in Suns history with five straight double-doubles off the bench. On April 5, 2017, he scored 16 and grabbed a career-best 17 rebounds in a 120–111 loss to the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

. On July 26, 2017, Williams re-signed with the Suns to a multi-year contract. On September 25, 2017, he was ruled out for six months after undergoing a meniscus repair of his right knee. On March 15, 2018, he was assigned to the Northern Arizona Suns. He was recalled on March 16, reassigned on March 20, and recalled again on March 25. On March 26, he made his season debut for Phoenix against the

. In 16 minutes off the bench, he recorded three points and five rebounds in a 102–94 loss. On July 2, 2018, Williams was waived by the Suns.

Brooklyn/Long Island Nets (2018–2019)

On September 24, 2018, Williams signed a

two-way contract A two-way contract is a professional sports contract that stipulates that an athlete's salary is dependent upon the league in which the athlete is assigned to play. This is opposed to a one-way contract that would pay the same salary regardless o ...

with the

Brooklyn Nets The Brooklyn Nets are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Nets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), ...

. Under the terms of the deal, he split his time between Brooklyn and their

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the Minor league#Basketball, developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of ...

affiliate, the

Long Island Nets The Long Island Nets are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Uniondale, New York, and are affiliated with the Brooklyn Nets. The team plays its home games at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Nassau County ...

. He was waived by Brooklyn on January 2, 2019, but was then re-signed to another two-way contract on January 11. He made his NBA debut that night and remained with the team for the rest of the 2018–19 season.

Shaanxi Xinda (2019)

In July and August 2019, Williams played with Shaanxi Xinda of the Chinese NBL.

Lokomotiv Kuban (2019–2022)

On August 13, 2019, Williams signed with Lokomotiv Kuban of the

VTB United League The VTB United League () is an international professional men's club basketball league that was founded in 2009. It is made up of mostly Russian clubs, along with one each from Belarus and Kazakhstan. Since 2013, it is the first tier of Russian ...

for the 2019–20 season. On June 4, 2020, Williams re-signed with Lokomotiv Kuban for the 2020–21 season. In November 2020, he was ruled out for the rest of the season with a knee injury. Williams returned to Lokomotiv Kuban for the 2021–22 season but left the team in March 2022.

S.E. Melbourne Phoenix and Nagoya Diamond Dolphins (2022–2024)

On August 5, 2022, Williams signed with the

South East Melbourne Phoenix The South East Melbourne Phoenix are an Australian professional basketball team based in the south–eastern Melbourne suburb of Wantirna South, Victoria. The Phoenix entered the National Basketball League (NBL) in the 2019–20 season. The t ...

in Australia for the 2022–23 NBL season. He led the league in rebounding with 9.6 per game. Following the NBL season, he joined the

of the Japanese B.League. Williams returned to the Phoenix for the

2023–24 NBL season The 2023–24 NBL season was the 46th season of the National Basketball League since its establishment in 1979. A total of ten teams contested in the 2023–24 season. Australian broadcast rights to the season are held by ESPN in the third seas ...

on a two-year deal, but missed the start of the season with a knee injury. He went on to average a league-leading 10.9 rebounds per game before being ruled out for the rest of the season on January 19, 2024, with another knee injury. On March 7, 2024, it was announced that Williams and the Phoenix agreed to mutually terminate his remaining contract.

Goyang Sono Skygunners (2024–2025)

On June 12, 2024, Williams signed with the

Goyang Sono Skygunners Goyang Sono Skygunners () is a professional basketball club based in Goyang, South Korea which plays in the Korean Basketball League. History Dayone Sports era (2022–2023) Rumours of Orion selling its stake in the club intensified in ear ...

of the

Korean Basketball League The Korean Basketball League () or simply KBL is a professional men's basketball league in South Korea which was established in 1997. The league consists of ten teams and each team plays a total of 54 games (27 home and 27 away) in the regular s ...

. His contract would expire on December 22, replacing by

Alpha Kaba Alpha Kaba (born 29 January 1996) is a French-Guinean professional basketball player who last played for the Goyang Sono Skygunners of the Korean Basketball League (KBL). He also represents the Guinea national team in international competitions ...

. On February 12, 2025, Williams re-signed with the Goyang Sono Skygunners to replace Alpha Kaba.

Second stint with Nagoya Diamond Dolphins (2025–present)

On May 29, 2025, Williams signed with the Nagoya Diamond Dolphins of the Japanese B.League.

Personal life

Williams' father, Cody Sr., is a Justice of the Peace for

Maricopa County Maricopa County () is a county in the south-central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2020 census the population was 4,420,568, or about 62% of the state's total, making it the fourth-most populous county in the United States and ...

, while his mother, Jeri, is the former

Chief of Police A chief of police (COP) is the title given to an appointed official or an elected one in the command hierarchy, chain of command of a police department, particularly in North America. A chief of police may also be known as a police chief or somet ...

in Phoenix. His younger brother, Cody Jr., also attended the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an ...

NBA career statistics

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Phoenix , 10 , , 0 , , 6.8 , , .417 , , .000 , , .643 , , 3.8 , , .5 , , .4 , , .5 , , 2.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Phoenix , 47 , , 0 , , 15.1 , , .517 , , .000 , , .625 , , 6.2 , , .5 , , .6 , , .7 , , 7.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Phoenix , 5 , , 0 , , 14.0 , , .389 , , .000 , , .667 , , 4.4 , , 1.6 , , 1.0 , , .2 , , 4.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, 5 , , 0 , , 5.2 , , .615 , , .000 , , .500 , , 3.8 , , .6 , , .2 , , .0 , , 3.6 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 67 , , 0 , , 13.0 , , .506 , , .000 , , .626 , , 5.5 , , .6 , , .6 , , .6 , , 6.2

Eurocup

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2019–20 , style="text-align:left;" rowspan="2", Lokomotiv , 10 , , 3 , , 22.0 , , .493 , , .0 , , .718 , , 9.4 , , 1.9 , , .7 , , .3 , , 9.4 , , 15.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2020–21 , 8 , , 8 , , 27.2 , , .495 , , .0 , , .619 , , 12.5 , , 2.1 , , 1.0 , , 0.9 , , 14.5 , , 21.1

References

External links

*
UC Santa Barbara Gauchos bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Alan 1993 births Living people 21st-century American sportsmen 21st-century African-American sportsmen American expatriate basketball people in Australia American expatriate basketball people in China American expatriate basketball people in Japan American expatriate basketball people in Russia American men's basketball players Basketball players from Phoenix, Arizona Brooklyn Nets players Centers (basketball) Nagoya Diamond Dolphins players Long Island Nets players North High School (Phoenix, Arizona) alumni Northern Arizona Suns players PBC Lokomotiv-Kuban players Phoenix Suns players Power forwards Qingdao Eagles players Shaanxi Wolves players South East Melbourne Phoenix players UC Santa Barbara Gauchos men's basketball players Undrafted NBA players Goyang Sono Skygunners players American expatriate basketball people in South Korea