At the trade deadline, the Dallas Mavericks traded forward Grant Williams to the Charlotte Hornets, and it turns out that the decision was made for reasons more than just Williams’ declining on-court performance.
The Mavericks were tired of Williams’ constant “yapping,” according to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon, who made this revelation during a recent episode of Brian Windhorst & The Hoop Collective podcast. They were even more shocked by the 25-year-old’s self-disclosure.
“Yap, yap, yapping is definitely a part of Grant Williams’ behavior, and it’s one of the ways he irritated people,” the author says. Which, when he’s not producing, is irritating and deliciously annoying,” MacMahon remarked. “However, he didn’t report well, and Grant Williams isn’t a good defender when he’s not well.”
Williams played just 47 games for Dallas throughout his time. This season, he has seen a gradual decline in minutes, with an average of 28 minutes in November and an average of 22 minutes in January.
Finally giving up on the season, the Mavericks sent Williams, Seth Curry, and a 2027 first-round pick to the Hornets on February 8 in return for P.J. Washington and two second-round picks.
Dallas has gone 4-0 since Williams’ trade and has a 5-0 record this season in the games he did not play. Additionally, when he was on the floor, their net rating was -4.0, and when he was on the bench, it was 3.9.
Even if Williams has performed better in Charlotte thus far, the Mavericks, who are also taking pleasure in the quiet, seem to be losing ground to the opposition.
