Deron Williams

Early life

Williams was born in Parkersburg, West Virginia. In elementary school and middle school, Williams won two state wrestling championships. In 1993, as an eight-year-old, he won the 67 lb. weight class Texas State championship. Four years later in 1997, he won the twelve-year-old 116 lb. weight class championship. Williams attended The Colony High School in The Colony, Texas and averaged 17 points, 9.4 assists, and 2 steals per game as a junior in 2001. That year he led his team, the Cougars, to a 32–2 record and the Class 5A state semifinals against Bryan High. In 2002, as a senior, he averaged 17.6 points, 8.5 assists, 6.1 rebounds, and 2.6 steals per game. His team, the Cougars, went 29–2 that season, losing the 5A Texas State semifinals. Williams was a teammate of Bracey Wright who went on to play for Big Ten rival Indiana University.

College career

Williams was recruited to play college basketball at the University of Illinois for the 2002–03 NCAA season by Bill Self. In his freshman year, he started 30 of 32 games and ranked third in the Big Ten Conference in assists with 4.53 per game.

Bruce Weber assumed the head coach position for the Illini in April 2003 and helped develop Williams throughout his remaining collegiate career. As a sophomore, Williams improved his scoring average from 6.3 to 14.0 points per game and improved his assists per game from the prior year to 6.17. Williams was a First-Team All-Big Ten selection by both the coaches and media.

In 2005, as a junior starting point guard, Williams led the Fighting Illini to the NCAA championship game where they lost to the University of North Carolina. That season saw the Illini go undefeated until the final game of the regular season when they lost to Ohio State by one point. Illinois's road to the Final Four was marked by a comeback win over the Arizona Wildcats, where the Illini, led by Williams, came back from fifteen points down in the final minutes to win the game. Williams made the game-tying three-point shot with just 38.5 seconds left in regulation. He then hit the go-ahead three-pointer in overtime, and the Illini never looked back in that game.

Williams received many awards after the 2004–05 season. Those honors include being named a consensus Second Team All American, as well as being named First Team All-Big Ten, Big Ten All-Tournament Team, and All-Final Four team and at the conclusion of the academic year, Williams was named as the University of Illinois Athlete of the Year. Williams was also a finalist for the Wooden Award and was named Most Outstanding Player of the Chicago Regional in the NCAA Tournament. Williams was named First-Team All-Big Ten as a sophomore in 2004 and as a junior in 2005, the year in which Williams, called by coach Bruce Weber "the MVP of the team", led the Illini to the Final Four. The team included four other future NBA players, including Dee Brown, Roger Powell, James Augustine, and Luther Head.

Williams declared for the NBA draft after the 2005 season, forgoing his final year of collegiate eligibility.

Professional career

Utah Jazz (2005–2011)

Following the season, Williams declared for the 2005 NBA draft. The Utah Jazz selected Williams with the third overall selection, after Andrew Bogut and Marvin Williams. He started the season coming off the bench, eventually moved into the role of starting point guard, and was later sent back to the bench. Williams finished his rookie season averaging 10.8 points and 4.5 assists per game, in 80 games played. Williams was rewarded by being named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team, as well as being the only other rookie besides Chris Paul to receive a first-place vote in the 2005–06 NBA Rookie of the Year voting (Williams received one first-place vote, from Jazz color commentator Ron Boone). Williams and Chris Paul have shared a friendly rivalry that began after the 2005 NBA draft, where Williams and Paul were the third and fourth selections overall. Whether Williams or Paul was the superior point guard is the subject of frequent debate among sports writers and fans.

Williams began the 2006–07 season as the starting point guard for the Jazz. The Jazz started the season with a 12–1 record. This record was the best in team history and in the league. During these first 13 games of the season, Williams played remarkably well, delivering five double-doubles. Two of these double-doubles were back-to-back performances of 26/14 and 27/15 (points/assists). Both of these assists totals bested his previous career-high. In the second of those two games, he also had a career-high in steals, with five. On January 17, 2007, in a game against the Detroit Pistons, he recorded a career-high 31 points. A few days later, on January 24, he recorded a career-high 21 assists in a game against the Memphis Grizzlies. In his second season, his numbers improved in almost all categories, increasing to 16.2 points and 9.3 assists per game (second only to Steve Nash in the NBA). The Jazz improved to post a 51–31 record, winning the Northwest Division title.

The playoffs ended a three-year playoff drought for the Jazz, and in the first round, they faced the Houston Rockets. Williams scored in double figures in each of the seven games in the series, including a 14 assist, 20 point double-double on May 5 to close out the series. The Jazz won the series 4–3, beating the Rockets in Houston to complete the series. It was their first playoff series victory since 2000.

In the second round, Williams and the Jazz faced the Golden State Warriors, the eighth-seeded team that had upset the top-seeded Dallas Mavericks 4–2 in the first round. Williams started off the series strong, posting double-doubles in two of the first four games as the Jazz jumped out to a 3–1 series lead. In the fifth game, Williams was plagued by foul problems and struggled from the floor, hitting only one of eleven shots from the field and scoring just two points. However, despite Williams's poor performance, the Jazz posted a 100–87 victory, sending the Jazz to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 1998 and the John Stockton and Karl Malone era.

New Jersey Nets (2011)

On February 23, 2011, Williams was traded to the New Jersey Nets for guard Devin Harris, forward Derrick Favors, two first round draft picks, and $3 million in cash. While Williams was under contract through 2011–12 with a player option worth $17.7 million for 2012–13, Jazz chief executive officer Greg Miller did not believe the team could re-sign Williams. "And while I never saw any indication that he wouldn't re-sign with us, I never saw any indication he would", said Miller.

Williams's acquisition gave the Nets a proven NBA star to build around as the team was preparing to make the transition to their new home in Brooklyn. Williams's impact on the Nets was immediately apparent, although he played in just 12 games due to a nagging wrist injury. As a team, the Nets were one of highest scoring teams post all-star break and big men Brook Lopez and Kris Humphries both saw their scoring numbers increase as Williams averaged 12.8 APG during those 12 games. His 47 assists were an NBA record for a player in his first 3 games with a new team and no Net before him recorded double-doubles in their first 5 games with the team. On April 11, 2011, Williams had wrist surgery on his right wrist which ended his season, although he was initially hesitant to having it. "I was angry and tried to tell the doctors that I didn't want to have the surgery", Williams said. "The two doctors had me outvoted, two against one. I couldn't do anything about it. They told me that there was no reason to postpone it and if I didn't have it, I would be dealing with the same pain again."

Beşiktaş (2011)

During the 2011 NBA lockout, Williams signed a one-year contract for $5 million net income to play for Beşiktaş of the Turkish Basketball League and the FIBA EuroChallenge. His contract allowed him to return to the NBA with the Nets once the work stoppage ended. Beşiktaş was the same team that signed Allen Iverson in 2010. Because Williams was still under an NBA contract, he required clearance from FIBA in order to play elsewhere.

On November 22, 2011, Williams scored 50 points against Göttingen, during a EuroChallenge first group-stage game. In the game, Williams went 17–23 from the field and 7–10 on three-point attempts and 9–11 on free throws. After a tentative agreement to end the 2011 NBA lockout was reached, Williams's jersey #8 was retired by Beşiktaş in a farewell ceremony prior to a game against Zorg en Zekerheid Leiden on November 29, 2011. Williams played a total of 15 games in Turkey.

Return to New Jersey / Brooklyn (2011–2015)

After the lockout ended, Williams returned to New Jersey, hoping to lead the Nets to the playoffs for the first time since 2007. The Nets caught a bad break in the preseason, though, as Brook Lopez suffered a broken foot that caused him to miss more than 2 months. After winning their opening game at Washington, the Nets went on to lose their next six, putting them in an early hole in the standings in an abbreviated season. The Nets continued to struggle without Lopez, but Williams played well enough to be voted into the All-Star Game for the third time in his career, as he averaged over 22 points and 8 assists at the break.

When Lopez returned after the All-Star break, the Nets began to pick up their play. On March 4, 2012, Williams scored a career-high and NBA Nets franchise-high 57 points against the Charlotte Bobcats. He broke the previous team record of 52 points held by Mike Newlin and Ray Williams. It was the most points scored in the NBA that season and the second-most points scored against the Bobcats by one player in a single game, second to Kobe Bryant. Lopez went down again with a sprained ankle and was out for several more weeks.

Williams remained optimistic that he would resign with the Nets, but was noncommittal as he said he wanted to keep his options open and become a free agent at the end of the season. Williams reiterated this stance on March 16 after the Nets failed to land All-Star center Dwight Howard at the trade deadline.

On July 11, 2012, Williams signed a five-year, $98.7 million deal to remain with the Nets, who had completed their move to Brooklyn. He was encouraged to stay with the Nets after GM Billy King completed a trade with the Atlanta Hawks for six-time All-Star Joe Johnson, as well as re-signing young big man Brook Lopez and defensive player Gerald Wallace. Williams scored the first regular-season points at the new Barclays Center on November 3, 2012, against the Toronto Raptors. The Nets won the game 107–100 as Williams finished the game with 19 points and 9 assists. On November 26, 2012, the Nets played their crosstown rival, the New York Knicks, at the Barclays Center. The game was scheduled to be played on November 1, 2012, and be the first game of the season for the Knicks and the Nets. The game was postponed due to weather in the New York City area involving Hurricane Sandy. The Nets beat the Knicks 96–89 in overtime, with Williams contributing 16 points and 14 assists. On December 27, 2012, the Nets fired head coach Avery Johnson after a 14 win, 14 loss start. Rumors circulated that Williams might have been involved in the firing, but Williams denied playing a role and said he was surprised Johnson was fired.

Dallas Mavericks (2015–2017)

On July 14, 2015, Williams signed a two-year, $11 million contract with the Dallas Mavericks with the second year being a player option. He made his debut for the Mavericks in the team's season opener against the Phoenix Suns on October 28, recording 12 points and 7 assists in a 111–95 win. On December 1, he scored a then season-high 30 points in a 115–112 overtime win over the Portland Trail Blazers. He missed the team's last four games of December with a left hamstring, returning to action on January 1 against the Miami Heat. He played in 20 minutes off the bench against the Heat, finishing with nine points and five assists. On January 5, he scored 25 points and hit the game-winning three-pointer in double overtime against the Sacramento Kings. On March 20, he recorded season highs of 31 points and 16 assists in a 132–120 overtime win over the Portland Trail Blazers, becoming the first Maverick with 30 points and 15 assists in the same game since Jason Kidd did so in 1996. Between late March and early April, Williams missed eight games with a left abdominal strain. The abdominal strain resurfaced for Williams in Game 4 of the Mavericks' first-round playoff series against the Oklahoma City Thunder, ruling him out for the rest of the game after just 89 seconds and later ruled him out for the rest of the season.

On July 8, 2016, Williams re-signed with the Mavericks on a one-year, $10 million contract. In the Mavericks' season opener on October 26, 2016, Williams scored a team-high 25 points in a 130–121 overtime loss to the Indiana Pacers. On December 3, he had a season-high 15 assists in a 107–82 win over the Chicago Bulls. Two days later, he had his first double-double of the season with 15 points and 13 assists in a 109–101 loss to the Charlotte Hornets. With seven assists on December 18 against the Sacramento Kings, Williams passed Derek Harper for 21st place on the NBA's all-time assists list with 6,584. On January 22, 2017, he had eight assists against the Los Angeles Lakers and moved into 20th place in NBA history with 6,715 assists, passing Kevin Johnson. On February 11, 2017, against Orlando, Williams returned after missing eight games with a sprained right big toe, getting seven points and four assists in 16 minutes in the first half before sitting out the second half on a minutes restriction. On February 23, 2017, Williams was waived by the Mavericks.

Cleveland Cavaliers (2017)

On February 27, 2017, Williams signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers. In his debut for the Cavaliers two days later, Williams scored four points in 24 minutes off the bench in a 103–99 loss to the Boston Celtics. On April 10, 2017, he had a season-high 35 points, nine assists and seven rebounds in a 124–121 overtime loss to the Miami Heat.

Williams appeared in all 18 playoff games for Cleveland as the backup point guard to Kyrie Irving, en route to the NBA Finals, where they were defeated by the Golden State Warriors.

National team career

Williams won a bronze medal as a member of the United States U18 team at the FIBA Americas U18 Championship in 2002. He was selected as a member of the USA Olympic team for the 2008 Olympics on June 23, 2008. The team went unbeaten on the way to winning back the gold medal after defeating 2006 World Champion Spain and living up to their "Redeem Team" moniker after missing out in the 2004 Summer Olympics. In 8 games in the 2008 Olympics, Williams averaged 8.0 points per game with 2.8 assists. Williams was one of three-point guards on the national team, alongside Chris Paul and Jason Kidd.

In January 2012, Williams made the 19 man roster of the USA men's basketball team for the 2012 Summer Olympics. He ultimately made the final roster. The team won the gold medal by beating Spain for the second consecutive Olympics with a score of 107–100. During the Olympics, Williams averaged 9.0 points per game with 4.6 assists as he collected his second Olympic gold medal.

Career statistics

Personal life

Williams was baptized as a Christian in early 2010. He married Amy Young, whom he had known since second grade and had dated since high school, and with whom he has four children.

Williams appeared as himself on the Disney Channel show The Suite Life on Deck during the season 3 episode Twister: Part 1 along with Dwight Howard and Kevin Love.

An avid boxing and MMA fan, Williams has trained for years in mixed martial arts and boxing and owns a stake in Fortis MMA. On November 5, 2021, it was announced that he would be fighting on the undercard of the Jake Paul vs. Tommy Fury fight. On November 9, 2021, his opponent was revealed to be Frank Gore. Williams won the fight in a split decision.

Endorsements

Williams was the cover athlete for the video game NBA Baller Beats on the Xbox 360. He attended E3 2012 to promote the game, as well play the game in the NBA Baller Beats booth. Williams currently has endorsement deals with companies such as Nike, Vitaminwater, Red Bull and MetroPCS; he acquired many of the deals during his successful time with the Utah Jazz. Since joining the Nets, Williams has starred in commercials for Red Bull and MetroPCS.